The Descent
by Trishala Vardhan
Summary: *sequel to The Black Swan* Odette's secret is turning lethal. Castiel's loyalties are shifting, and Dean is struggling with his suspicions. Sam's powers are taking a turn for the worse, and Azazel's plan is set into motion.
1. Don't Fear The Reaper

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Hey, again, guys!**

**This is the sequel to The Black Swan, and this won't make sense until you read it first!**

**Chapter name borrowed from Blue Oyster Cult.**

**Reviews are love!**

CHAPTER ONE- DON'T FEAR THE REAPER

I freaking hate hospitals.

Naturally, I was in one.

Alone.

"Sam? Odette? Dad? Anybody?"

So I marched down the stairs in a white shirt and blue hospital pants and nothing else.

(Ever heard of slippers?)

The nurse's station was in front of the hospital.

"Excuse me. Hi. I, uh, I think I was in a car accident," The girl kept on typing.

"My dad, my brother, this kid, I just need to find them."

No response.

"Hello?"

I snapped my fingers under her nose.

Zilch.

This could _not_ be happening.

I ran back upstairs, barging into the first room I saw.

I froze.

I was staring at my own body.

My intubated, dying (still completely hot) body.

~Supernatural~

Something rustled behind me, and I turned around in relief as I saw Sam and the kid.

"Sammy!" I moved up to him. "You look good. Considering."

My eyes shifted to Odette.

She looked terrible.

I huffed.

"You look like death warmed over, kid. Get some rest."

No answer.

"Oh, no," Sam breathed out, staring at, well….. me, I guess.

The _other_ me.

Odette looked freaked.

"Come on, Dean, wake up."

"I _am_ up, you idiot!"

Girls.

Seriously.

Silence.

I turned to Sam.

"Man, tell me you can hear me."

Sam kept staring at the other me.

I looked between the both of them.

"How's Dad? Is he okay? Come on, you're both psychics! Give me some ghost whispering or something!"

(And I never thought I'd say _that_ in my life.)

Sam was quiet.

Odette was looking around the room uneasily, as if she sensed I was here.

Guess the demon wasn't lying about her being stronger.

That was a bad sign.

Then the doctor entered.

"Your father's awake. You can go see him if you like."

"Thank god," The air whooshed out of my lungs.

(I mean, if I had any air, which I technically didn't. And that sucked.)

"Doc, what about my brother?"

"Well," The doctor did his whole doom-and-gloom expression.

"He sustained some serious injuries- blood loss, contusions to his liver and kidney. But it's the head trauma I'm worried about. There's early signs of cerebral edema."

Cere-bro what?

The doctor talked to Odette all prissily.

"You shouldn't be out of bed, Ms Slessor. You've lost quite a lot of blood."

I remembered what she'd said to me in the car.

She looked pale.

No, that wasn't the right word.

Odette wasn't white-as-a-sheet pale, either.

More creepy-ectoplasmic-ghostly pale.

She looked deader than me.

(Was deader even a word?)

Fine, my ass.

She ignored him.

"Well, what can we do?"

"We won't know his full condition until he wakes up. _If _ he wakes up."

"If?" Sam looked as if he'd been socked in the gut.

"I have to be honest-"

That was it.

"Oh, screw you, Doc, I'm waking up!"

I wasn't letting some douchebag in a white coat decide whether I was gonna be around or not.

"Most people with this degree of injury wouldn't have survived this long," Dr. McDouchey continued.

"He's fighting very hard. But you need to have realistic expectations."

"Come on, Sam," I stared at them both.

"Go find some hoodoo priest to lay some mojo on me."

"Sam?"

There was no reply.

~Supernatural~

"What did the doctor say about Dean?" Dad seemed okay.

I mean, as okay as a guy who got rode by a demon could be.

Good times.

"Nothing," Sam kicked a chair leg. "The doctors won't do anything, so we'll have to, that's all. I don't know, I'll find some hoodoo priest and lay some mojo on him."

That made me feel a lot better.

"That's my boy," I grinned proudly at Sam.

"We'll look for someone," Dad nodded.

"Yeah."

"But, Sam, I don't know if we're gonna find anyone."

Sam glowered at him. "Why not? I found the faith healer before."

"Right, that was," Dad paused. "That was one in a million."

Sam gave him the royal stinkeye.

"So what? Do we just sit here with our thumbs up our ass?"

Elegantly put, if I do say so myself.

"No, I said we'd look, all right? I'll check under every stone."

He waited a beat.

"Where's the Colt?"

And there was the Dad I knew and loved.

Odette lost it.

"Your son is dying, and you're worried about the Colt?"

There was shocked silence for a minute.

I snorted.

Who knew?

Beauty Queen had claws.

Dad gave her his signature 'Don't mess with me, young lady' look.

"We're hunting this demon, and maybe it's hunting us too. That gun may be our only card."

Odette shut up.

"It's in the trunk," Sam added, shifting the focus from Odette to him. "They dragged the car to a yard off of I-83."

"All right," Dad attempted to sit up. "You've gotta clean out that trunk before some junk man sees what's inside."

The kid huffed.

Sam eyed her worriedly.

"I already called Bobby. He's like an hour out, he's gonna tow the Impala back to his place."

Sam caught hold of her arm.

"Come on, let's get you to bed. You look like hell."

Once a mother hen, always a mother hen.

But the kid was worrying me too.

She looked about ready to drop.

Literally.

They were about to leave when Dad stopped them.

"Hey. Here." He picked up a sheet of paper. "I made a list of things I need, have Bobby pick them up for me."

Sam looked back at him.

"Hey, Dad? You know, the demon, he said he had plans for me, and children like me. Do you have any idea what he meant by that?"

"No, I don't."

I took one look at his face, and I knew he was lying through his teeth.

"Well, you sure know something."

~Supernatural~

Dad was sitting by my bed.

"Come on, Dad. You've gotta help me. I've gotta get better, I've gotta get back in there. I mean, you haven't called a soul for help. You haven't even tried. Aren't you gonna do anything? Aren't you even gonna say anything?"

That hurt.

I'd put my life on the line for him.

Followed his every order.

I walked around the bed.

"I've done everything you've ever asked me. Everything. I have given everything I've ever had. And you're just going to sit there and watch me die?"

I kicked the bedpost.

Maybe the demon was right.

"I mean, what the hell kind of father are you?"

I paused, something scraped over the hallway.

"What is that?"

I went out, and some spirit whooshed past me.

I jumped back with a curse.

I looked at Dad.

"I take it you didn't see that."

I stalked it down the hallway, and it turned back to a woman lying on the floor.

She was choking.

"Help! Help!"

"Hey!" I yelled. "I need some help in here!"

Nobody heard me.

"I can't….. breathe!"

She panted loudly, and then went silent.

I leaned over her helplessly.

~Supernatural~

Sam banged the door open, Odette close on his heels.

I resisted the urge to shake them, hard.

"Sammy! Odette! Tell me you can friggin' hear me; there's something in the hospital. You've got to bring me back now and we've got to hunt this thing!"

"You're quiet," Dad said.

Sam turned, fuming, hurling his duffle bag on the bed with a crash.

"Did you think I wouldn't find out?"

"What are you talking about?"

"That stuff from Bobby," Sam scowled.

"You don't use it to ward off a demon, you use it to summon one! You're planning on bringing the demon here, aren't you? Having some stupid macho showdown!"

Dad flexed his jaw. "I have a plan, Sam."

That set him off properly.

"That's exactly my point!" He exploded. "Dean is dying, and you have a plan! You know what, you care more about killing this demon than you do saving your own son!"

Was this the time?

"No, no, no, guys, don't do this!"

As always, no response.

"Do not tell me how I feel! I am doing this for Dean!"

"How?" Sam flared his nostrils (biggest sign he was really, _really_ pissed).

"How is revenge going to help him? You're not thinking about anybody but yourself, it's the same selfish obsession!"

This was just peachy.

"Come on guys, don't do this!"

Dad was getting angry too.

"You know, it's funny, I thought it was your obsession too! This demon killed your mother, killed your girlfriend. You begged me to be a part of this hunt. If you'd killed the damn thing when you had the chance, none of this would have happened!"

Odette was trying to pull Sam away.

It didn't work.

"It was possessing you, Dad, I would have killed you too!"

"Yeah, and your brother would be awake right now!"

"Shut up, both of you!"

"Go to hell," Sam spat.

"I should have never taken you along in the first place. I knew it was a mistake, I knew I was wrong-"

I'd had enough.

"I said SHUT UP!"

I smacked the glass of water off the table.

It went flying, crashing to the floor.

They looked at each other, confused.

I was stunned.

"Dude, I full-on Swayze'd that mother."

I crumpled in pain, suddenly.

(Did I just start flickering?)

Nurses and doctors were running by in the hallway.

"What is it?"

"Something's going on out there," Odette dragged Sam out of the room.

~Supernatural~

"Okay, let's go again, 360," Dr. McDouchey said.

"Charging," The nurse replied.

I moved up slowly behind them.

Sam and Odette were huddled by the doorway.

Odette had her arm around Sam.

Both of them were crying.

No.

This wasn't going to happen.

I wasn't leaving them.

There was a translucent figure floating over my body.

"You get the hell away from me!"

I ran to the bed.

"I said get back!" I yelled.

Odette blinked, looking confused, almost as if she heard me.

I grabbed the spirit, latching on momentarily before it hurled me back, soaring out of the room.

The monitors slowed.

"We have a pulse," The nurse said. "We're back in sinus rhythm."

I raced outside, looking for the spirit.

It had vanished.

They sighed in relief.

I came back to stand next to them.

"Listen to me, both of you," I said, even though I knew they couldn't hear me.

"I'm not going anywhere, don't worry. I'm getting that thing before it gets me."

Odette looked over to where I was, puzzled.

Maybe I could get through to her.

I wandered the halls, then I heard another girl yelling.

"Can't you see me? Why won't you look at me?"

"Now what?"

I ran on ahead, searching for the voice.

"Somebody talk to me! Say something, please!"

I finally found her.

She was pretty, for an about-to-be-dead girl.

Glossy black hair, pale skin, the works.

(What, can't a guy notice?)

"Can you see me?" I asked her.

"Yeah."

"Alright, just, uh," I swore silently. How was I supposed to deal with a hysterical girl?

"Just calm down. What's your name?"

"Tessa."

"Okay, good, Tessa, I'm Dean."

"What's happening to me?" She whirled around, trying to get somebody's attention.

"Am- am I dead?"

I shifted uncomfortably.

"That sort of depends."

~Supernatural~

Watching yourself dying was odd.

After I'd explained everything to Tessa, I'd come back here.

I didn't see Odette until I walked straight in.

She still looked weak.

"Come on, kid, get some rest. Hanging around here's not gonna do me or you any good."

I didn't actually want her to go.

At least she and Sam actually gave a damn that I was dying.

I felt this funny tingling sensation in my hand, and I realized Odette was holding it.

The other me's hand, I mean.

I rolled my eyes instantly.

What happened to no chick-flick moments?

Guess she hadn't gotten the memo.

I could've pushed it off if I'd wanted to, but I didn't.

(So sue me.)

And then she started speaking.

"Dean, you've got to wake up. Please."

I didn't like where this was going.

"It'll kill Sam, if you don't, Dean."

Oh, didn't I know it.

"I'm trying, kid."

"It'll kill me, too."

_That_ was unexpected.

She held on to my hand tighter.

"I know you don't like me, but please. For Sam's sake."

I felt like a jerk.

I'd been nothing but a douche to her, and here the kid was, jeopardizing her own recovery to sit with me.

"That's not true, Odette."

Again, she didn't hear me.

"We'll fall apart if you're not here, Dean. The demon was wrong. They do need you, Dean. Sam needs you. I need you."

The tears were brimming over in her ridiculous doe eyes, and I felt worse than ever.

Nobody else could guilt trip me this much.

Correction: Nobody else guilt tripped me at _all_.

Damn that kid.

Then she got my attention again.

"This is probably stupid, but it's like I can sense you here, Dean. Like you're just out of eyeshot. I don't know if it's my psychic thing or what…. just…please."

Odette promptly passed out right after that.

I sighed, picking her up gently and placing her on the bed next to other me, brushing the hair away from her face.

Her hand curled around mine, almost as if she knew I was there.

She looked about five right about then, with her nose wrinkled up, lips pursed, and her hair in a mess.

~Supernatural~

I was walking down the hallway with Tessa when I heard them.

"Room 237, code blue. Dr. Kripke to room 237, code blue."

I raced down to the room.

The same goddamn thing was hovering over a little girl.

The nurses were trying to resuscitate her.

It reached a hand into her face.

"Get away from her!"

I lunged at it, but it had already vanished.

But it was too late.

The girl was dead.

I finally put two and two together.

I knew what was after me now.

A reaper.

A frigging _reaper_.

Great.

Just great.


	2. The Spontaneous Combustion Of John

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**ccgnme- Thank you! Yeah, it's been a year, right? Even Dean has to care!**

**TH3angelinH3LL- Thank you so much! I'm so happy you like it! I'm a giant Cas girl myself, as you've probably noticed, so I'm very pleased you think I did him justice! **

**captainbartholomew- Thank you! Dean PoV's are always a pleasure to write! I can't really take credit for the idea of stories for each season, it was suggested to me by a friend. Uh, pent-up rage? I would say grief, more like it. Rage is kinda Dean and Sam's M.O.**

**Garideth- Thank you! (Yeah, I figured you might after her speech, and everything.) :P**

**AngelicScream: Yeah, most people get tired after pushing fifty or so…..**

**stupid-nickel- Um, Dean knocked over the glass by touching it, right? So, who's to say he can't move Odette?**

**Chapter name borrowed from The Flaming Lips!**

**Lyrics are borrowed from Lyman Hancock.**

_When I come to the end of my journey,_

_ And I travel my last weary mile,_

_ Just forget if you can, that I ever frowned_

_ And remember only the smile._

_ Forget unkind words I have spoken,_

_ Remember some good I have done,_

_ Forget that I've stumbled and blundered,_

_ And sometimes fell by the way,_

_ Remember I have fought some hard battles,_

_ And won, 'ere the close of the day._

CHAPTER TWO- THE SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION OF JOHN

I entered the room quietly, clutching a brown paper bag.

He was here.

He had to be.

"Hey," I cleared my throat nervously. "I think maybe you're around. And if you are, don't make fun of me for this, but um, well, there's one way we can talk."

I pulled out the Ouija board.

I circled around the bed, sitting cross-legged on the floor.

"Dean? Dean, are you here?"

I had my hands poised on the pointer, when it slid out of my grip to 'YES'.

I froze for a second, laughing in relief.

"Oh, thank god. You scared me, Dean. It hasn't been the same without you."

He slid the pointer again.

I blinked in confusion.

"Dean, what? H? U?" It finally sunk in. "Hunt? Hunting? What, are you hunting?"

The pointer moved back to 'YES'.

I looked around the seemingly empty room.

"It's in the hospital, what you're hunting? Do, do you know what it is?"

"What is it?"

The pointer slid forward again, spelling the letters 'REAP'.

My stomach plummeted.

"A reaper. Dean. Is it after you?"

'YES'.

I blew out noisily.

"If it's here naturally, there's no way to stop it."

I stood up, pacing the floor.

"No. No, no, there's gotta be a way. Sam… Sam'll know what to do."

~Supernatural~

"So, he really answered?" Sam ran back to Dean's room, carrying John's journal.

"Yeah."

Sam stared wistfully at Dean's unconscious body.

He sat on the edge of his bed.

"So, Dad wasn't in his room, but I got his journal, so who knows? Maybe there's something here."

Sam flipped it open to the page about reapers, and I leaned over his shoulder to read it.

Something cold brushed against my shoulder.

Dean.

He'd found something.

~Supernatural~

Sam stood on the window side of Dean's bed, hands in his pockets.

I squeezed his hand.

"Dean, are you here?"

We both looked around.

"I couldn't find anything in the book," Sam exhaled heavily. "I don't know how to help you. But I'll keep trying, alright? As long as you keep fighting. I mean, come on," His breath hitched.

"You can't leave me alone with Dad. We'll kill each other, you know that."

He paused, and I put an arm around his shoulder.

"Dean, you've got to hold on. You can't go, man, not now. We were just starting to be brothers again. Can you hear me?"

There was no response.

I pulled him out of the room.

Sam was fighting tears, and I rubbed his back soothingly.

"It's okay, Sammy. Everything's gonna be okay."

He started in surprise as I used Dean's nickname for him, but didn't object.

It wasn't until later that I realized that I'd said the exact same thing to my own brother.

~Supernatural~

We were both sitting on Dean's bed, when he convulsed, waking suddenly, choking on the tube in his throat.

Sam was on his feet at once.

"Dean?"

I ran into the hallway.

"Help! I need help!"

"I can't explain it," The doctor shot Dean a bewildered look.

"The edema's vanished. The internal contusions are healed. Your vitals are good. You have some kind of angel watching over you."

I instantly thought of Castiel.

"Thanks, Doc."

As he left, Dean turned to Sam.

"So you said a reaper was after me?"

"Yeah," Sam nodded.

"How'd I ditch it?" Dean cocked an eyebrow.

Sam shrugged. "You got me."

I looked at Dean in disbelief.

"Dean, you really don't remember anything?"

He glanced at me, shaking his head.

"No. Except this pit in my stomach. Something's wrong."

Somebody knocked on the door.

John hovered in the doorway.

"How you feeling, dude?"

"Fine, I guess," Dean snorted. "I'm alive."

"That's what matters."

Sam clenched his fists angrily. "Where were you last night?"

"I had some things to take care of," John's eyes were hooded.

Sam rolled his eyes. "Well, that's specific."

"Sam," Dean's tone was rebuking. "Come on."

He ignored him.

"Did you go after the demon?"

John stared at him impassively. "No."

Sam glared at him.

"You know, why don't I believe you right now?"

John sighed.

"Can we not fight? You know, half the time we're fighting, I don't even know what we're fighting about," He pleaded.

"We're just butting heads. Sammy, I, I've made some mistakes. But I've always done the best I could. I just don't want to fight anymore, okay?"

Sam glanced at him oddly. "Dad, are you alright?"

"Yeah." John passed a hand over his face. "Yeah, I'm just a little tired. Hey, son, would you, uh, mind getting me a cup of caffeine?"

"Yeah." Sam bobbed his head. "Yeah, sure."

He left, still frowning.

John looked after him sadly.

I made to follow him, but John walked with me out in the hallway.

I bit my lip nervously.

"So," He began.

"So." I shifted uncomfortably.

"I guess you're going to be staying with them, aren't you?"

I looked at him, confused. "If they don't mind, I guess so, yeah."

Something unidentifiable flashed in his face.

"You take care of my boys, you hear me?"

Unease flickered through me.

"Of course, John. I promise."

I watched John go back to talk with Dean, unsettled.

It wasn't even an order, what he'd told me.

They were the words of a man about to die.

~Supernatural~

I walked back with Sam in silence, cradling my own cup of coffee.

We looked into the room.

John was on the floor.

"Dad?"

We ran to his side, and Sam knelt over him, screaming for help.

I think I knew, even then, that it was already too late.

The doctors were attempting resuscitation.

We stood in the doorway, ignoring the nurses who tried to push us out.

"No, no, no, it's our dad," Dean was frantic. "It's our dad!"

"Come on," Dean begged the unresponsive John.

"Okay," The doctor looked grim. "Stop compressions."

"Come on, come on," My hand closed around his arm.

"Still no pulse," The nurse looked down.

"Okay, that's it everybody."

I held on to Dean and Sam tightly.

"I'll call it. Time of death: 10:41 AM."


	3. Can't Sleep, Clowns Will Eat Me

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Chapter name borrowed from Alice Cooper.**

**I couldn't resist adding a little fluff.**

**Angsty, but fluff all the same. ;)**

**Lyrics borrowed from Shinedown.**

_Stare in wonder, who's here to bring you down?_

_ Find your martyr, I'm sure you've made the crown_

_ So light a fire under my bones, so when_

_I die for you; at least I'll die alone._

CHAPTER THREE- CAN'T SLEEP, CLOWNS WILL EAT ME

We stood by the funeral pyre silently.

The only light came from John's burning body.

Sam was near tears.

It was Dean I was worried about; he stared woodenly into the flames.

"Before he…" Sam choked on his words.

"Before, did he say anything to you? About anything?"

Dean averted his gaze. "No. Nothing."

He turned on his heel, leaving Sam alone.

The minute Dean went away, Sam fell apart, the tears coursing down his cheek.

I wanted to hug him, but couldn't quite summon up the courage.

Sam decided for me.

He flung his arms around me, and I instantly wrapped mine around him.

I hugged him tightly, hating the tears that soaked my shirt.

"Ssh," I squeezed tighter. "It's gonna be alright, Sam."

I closed my own eyes as I remembered the day I'd lost everything.

I couldn't let Dean or Sam go the way I had.

I was too far gone.

They weren't.

I remembered John's last words to me.

_Take care of my boys, you hear me?_

I would.

I had to.

~Supernatural~

Bobby watched sadly from the front porch as Dean worked furiously on the Impala.

Sam and I made our way down to him.

"How's the car coming along?" Sam bounced back on his heels, expression uncertain.

"Slow," Dean grunted.

"Yeah?" Sam paused. "Need any help?"

Dean dropped something heavily, snorting derisively.

"What, you under a hood? I'll pass."

I wished I could help Dean, but I knew all he would do was push me away.

"Need anything else, then?" Sam hovered helplessly.

Dean pushed himself out from under the car and stood up.

"Stop it, Sam."

"Stop what?" Sam sounded hurt, and I squeezed his hand once before letting go.

Dean glowered. "Stop asking if I need anything, stop asking if I'm okay. I'm okay. Really. I promise."

We both knew he was lying.

"Alright, Dean, it's just…." Sam's breath hitched. "We've been at Bobby's for over a week now, and you haven't brought up Dad once."

Dean kicked away his toolbox.

"You know what? You're right. Come here. I'm gonna lay my head gently on your shoulder. Maybe we can cry and hug. Even slow dance while we're at it."

Sam huffed. "Don't patronize me, Dean, Dad is dead. The Colt is gone, and it seems pretty damn likely that the demon is behind all of it, and you're acting like nothing's happened."

Dean glared at him.

"What do you want me to say?"

"Say something, alright?" Sam blinked rapidly. "Hell, say anything! Aren't you angry? Don't you want revenge? But all you do is sit out here all day long buried under this damn car!"

Dean exhaled heavily. "Revenge, huh?"

"Yeah."

"Sounds good," Dean smiled mirthlessly.

"You got any leads on where the demon is? Making head or tail of any of Dad's research? Because I sure ain't. But you know- if we do finally find it- oh, no, wait, like you said. The Colt's gone. But I'm sure you've figured out another way to kill it."

He looked away from us.

"We've got nothing, Sam. Nothing, okay? So you know the only thing I can do? I can work on the car."

Dean crouched back down by the car again, ignoring us.

"Well, we've got something, alright?"

Sam pulled out a cell phone.

"It's what I came by here to tell you," He added.

"This is one of Dad's old phones. Took me a while, but I cracked his voicemail code. Listen to this."

Dean took the phone reluctantly.

"John, it's Ellen," A woman's voice drawled. "Again. Look, don't be stubborn; you know I can help you. Call me."

"That message is four months old," Sam said pointedly.

Dean's eyebrow quirked up.

"Dad saved that chick's message for four months?"

"Yeah."

"Well, who's Ellen?" Dean handed back the phone. "Any mention of her in Dad's journal?"

"No," Sam sighed. "But I ran a trace on her phone number and I got an address."

Dean stood up.

"Ask Bobby if we can use one of his cars."

~Supernatural~

The mini-van was poorly maintained, and I twitched uncomfortably as we pulled up outside the Roadhouse Saloon.

"This is humiliating," Dean eyed the van balefully.

"I feel like a friggin' soccer mom!"

Sam rolled his eyes. "It's the only car Bobby had running."

We looked around.

"Hello? Anybody here?"

"Hey," Dean looked back at Sam. "You bring the, uh-"

"Of course," Sam tossed it to Dean.

We opened the door and went inside.

The saloon was quiet.

A light bulb blew out.

We went back, and I started in surprise as I saw a man passed out on the bar.

Sam moved closer.

"Hey, buddy?"

He paused.

"I'm guessing that isn't Ellen."

"Yeah."

Sam went into a back room, and I followed Dean down the steps.

We both froze as something grabbed me from behind, and pressed a gun to Dean's back.

"Oh, god, please let that be a rifle," Dean cursed loudly.

The gun cocked, and I struggled uselessly against the pretty blonde girl.

"No," She said. "I'm just real happy to see you. Don't move."

"Not moving, copy that," Dean grinned. "You know, you should know something, miss. When you put a rifle on someone, you don't want to put it right against their back. Because it makes it real easy to do….."

He turned fluidly, grabbing the rifle and cocking it.

"That."

The girl punched him in the face, taking back the rifle.

Dean doubled over, clutching his nose.

I jerked against the girl's tight grip.

"Sam!" Dean called. "Need some help in here."

He muttered sullenly.

"I can't see, I can't even see."

The back door opened and Sam walked in, hands on his head.

He entered slowly.

"Sorry, Dean, I can't right now. I'm a little…. tied up."

He indicated an older woman, probably Ellen, standing behind him with a handgun pointed at his head.

"Sam? Dean? Winchester?"

"Yeah," They said together.

"Son of a bitch," She said.

"Mom, you know these guys?" The blonde raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I think these are John Winchester's boys."

She lowered the gun, laughing.

"Hey, I'm Ellen. This is my daughter Jo."

Jo lowered her's as well, and Dean smiled at her.

"Hey."

"You're not gonna hit me again, are you?" Dean eyed her warily.

Ellen finally noticed me as she handed Dean a towel filled with ice.

"Who's this?"

I opened my mouth at the same time Dean said: "A friend."

Sam and Dean shuffled me behind them.

I blinked uncertainly.

"Hi. I'm Odette."

Ellen smiled at me warmly, and Jo winked.

Dean relaxed slightly.

"You called our dad, said you could help. Help with what?"

"Well, the demon, of course," Ellen rolled her eyes.

"I heard he was closing in on it."

"What, was there an article in the Demon Hunters Quarterly that I missed?" Dean demanded.

"I mean, who, who are you? How do you know all about this?"

"Hey, I just run a saloon," Ellen shrugged.

"But hunters have been known to pass through now and again, including your dad a long time ago. John was like family once."

"Oh, yeah?" Dean crossed his arms. "How come he never mentioned you before?"

"You'd have to ask him that."

"So why exactly do we need your help?"

Dean was distinctly unfriendly.

"Hey, don't do me any favors," Ellen took back the towel from Dean.

"Look, if you don't want my help, fine. Don't let the door smack your ass on the way out. But John wouldn't have sent you if…"

She stopped.

"He didn't send you."

Dean looked down, then back at Sam.

"He's all right, isn't he?"

Sam coughed.

"No. No, he isn't. It was the demon, we think. It, um, it just got him before he got it, I guess."

Ellen sobered up.

"I'm so sorry."

"It's okay," Dean turned away. "We're all right."

"Really?" Ellen's tone was skeptical. "I know how close you and your dad were."

"Really, lady, I'm fine," Dean said shortly.

I pulled him away, slightly.

"So, look," Sam spoke up quickly. "If you can help, we could use all the help we can get."

"Well, we can't," Ellen mused. "But Ash will."

"Who's Ash?"

Ellen cupped her hands around her mouth. "Ash!"

The man passed out on the bar jerked awake, flailing wildly.

""What?" He asked grumpily. "It closin' time?"

"That's Ash?" Sam looked at him doubtfully.

"Mm-hmm," Jo grinned. "He's a genius."

I brought out the brown folder, slapping it down on the table where Sam and Ash were sitting.

Dean stood behind them unhappily.

"You've gotta be kidding me," Dean scoffed.

"This guy's no genius, he's a Lynyrd Skynyrd roadie."

"I like you," Ash said good-humouredly.

"Thanks, I guess," Dean blinked.

"Just give him a chance," Jo said from the other side of the room.

Dean sat down, dragging me next to him.

"All right. This stuff's about a year's worth of our dad's work, so, uh, let's see what you make of it."

Ash pulled out the papers and rifled through them.

He shook his head in disbelief.

"Come on. This crap ain't real. There ain't nobody can track a demon like this."

"Our dad could," Sam spoke quietly.

Ash whistled.

"There are non-parametrics, statistical overviews, prospects and correlations, I mean…. damn! They're signs. Omens. Uh, if you can track 'em, you can track this demon."

"Can you track it or not?" Sam leant back in his chair.

"Yeah, with this, I think so." He noticed me, momentarily distracted.

"Hey, beautiful."

Dean growled, annoyed.

I shifted uncomfortably. "Hi."

Seeing Dean's glare and Sam's frown, Ash stopped talking.

"It's gonna take time, uh, give me…. fifty one hours."

He got up to leave.

"Hey, man?" Dean glanced at his mullet.

"Yeah."

"I, uh, I dig the haircut."

Ash grinned. "All business up front, party in the back."

As he left, Jo walked by, flirting with Dean.

He checked her out tiredly.

Even as he got up to follow her, I could tell his heart wasn't in it.

Sam focused on something behind the bar.

"Hey, Ellen, what is that?"

She looked up.

"The folder? Uh, I was gonna give this to a friend of mine, but take a look if you want."

Someone had scrawled over it in red marker.

'COUPLE MURDERED

CHILD LEFT ALIVE

MEDFORD, WISC.'

"Hey, Dean!" I called.

"What?" He asked testily.

"A few murders," Sam gestured to Ellen's folder. "Not far from here, that Ellen caught wind of. Looks to me like there might be a hunt."

"Yeah. So?" Dean was curt.

"So, I told her we'd check it out."

~Supernatural~

"You've gotta be kidding me," Dean shook his head. "A killer clown?"

"Yeah," Sam flipped open his laptop.

"He left the daughter unharmed and killed the parents. Ripped them to pieces, actually."

"And this family was at some carnival that night?" Dean cocked an eyebrow.

"Right," I leafed through the pages. "The, uh, Cooper Carnivals."

"So how do you know that we're not dealing with some psycho carnie in a clown suit?"

"Well, the cops have no viable leads," Sam added.

"All the employees were tearing down shop. Alibis all around. Plus this girl said she saw a clown vanish into thin air. Cops are saying trauma, of course."

"Well, I know what you're thinking, Sam." Dean waggled his eyebrows knowingly. "Why did it have to be clowns?"

"Oh, give me a break," Sam groused, flushing slightly.

Dean laughed.

"You didn't think I'd remember, did you? I mean, come on, you still bust out crying whenever you see Ronald McDonald on the television."

I chuckled quietly, stopping only when Sam scowled at me.

"Well, at least I'm not afraid of flying," Sam retorted crossly.

I looked curiously at Dean.

"Planes crash!" He said defensively.

"And apparently clowns kill!" Sam returned.

Dean changed the subject.

"So, these types of murders, they ever happen before?"

I looked down at the folder again.

"Uh, according to the file, 1981, the Bunker Brothers Circus, same M.O. It happened three times, three different locales."

Dean huffed. "It's weird, though, I mean if it's a spirit it's usually bound to a specific locale, you know, a house, or a town."

"So how's this one moving from city to city, carnival to carnival?" Sam chewed his lip thoughtfully.

"Cursed object, maybe," Dean shrugged. "Spirit attaches itself to something, and, the, uh carnival carries it around with them."

"Great." Sam grumbled. "Paranormal scavenger hunt."

"Well, this case was your idea, Samsquatch." Dean turned around to look at him.

"By the way, why is that? You were awfully quick to jump on the job."

"So?"

"It's just….. not like you, that's all," Dean cleared his throat.

"I thought you were hell-bent for leather on the demon hunt."

"I don't know," Sam sighed. "I just think, this job, it's what Dad would have wanted us to do."

"What Dad would have wanted?" There was a definite bite to Dean's voice.

"Yeah. So?"

"Nothin'," Dean pressed the ignition.

~Supernatural~

We pulled up outside the carnival.

"Check it out. Five-oh," Dean pointed at the detectives.

Sam stood with his hands in his pockets as a three-foot tall woman in a clown outfit passes him.

He twitched nervously.

Dean sauntered up, grinning.

"Did you get her number?"

Sam snarled irritably. "More murders?"

"Two more last night," Dean turned serious. "Apparently, they were ripped to shreds. And they had a little boy with them."

"Who fingered a clown," Sam glared at Dean.

Dean paused, shooting Sam an odd look.

"What?" He snapped.

"Yeah, a clown, who apparently vanished into thin air."

~Supernatural~

We walked into the nearest tent.

"Excuse me," Dean looked at the man throwing knives.

"We're looking for a Mr. Cooper, have you seen him around?"

"What is that, some kind of joke?"

He pulled off his sunglasses.

The man was blind.

"Oh. God, I'm, I'm sorry," Dean ground his heels into the ground.

"You think I wouldn't give my eyeteeth to see Mr. Cooper? Or a sunset, or anything at all?"

Dean nudged Sam.

"Wanna give me a little help here?"

"Not really," Sam smirked.

Another employee came up.

"Hey, man, is there a problem?"

We turned and saw an extremely short man in a red cape.

"Yeah, this guy hates blind people."

"No, I don't, I…." Dean stammered.

"Hey, buddy, what's your problem?" The short man demanded.

"Nothing," Dean's voice rose in pitch, "It's just a little misunderstanding."

"Little!" His nostrils flared. "You son of a bitch!"

"No, no, no, no!" Dean looked around wildly. "I'm just, could somebody tell me where Mr. Cooper is?"

Sam started laughing.

"Please?"

~Supernatural~

Dean finally got away from the irate employees, giving us a dirty look.

"What took you so long?"

"Long story," Dean snapped. "Big help you were back there, by the way."

Sam opened his mouth to answer, when the little girl standing next to us jumped up and down excitedly.

"Mommy, look at the clown!"

We turned sharply to where the girl was pointing.

"What clown?"

There was nothing there.


	4. The Joker Went Wild

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Garideth- Of course you're not :P**

**AngelicScream- Truthfully, I find clowns a little creepy…..**

**XKaterinaNightingaleX- Yeah, I thought adding it would be a nice touch!**

**captainbartholomew- I don't like them, either! Thank you!**

**DemonicLightning- Aw, thank you! I'm happy you're following up with the story!**

**Chapter name borrowed from Brian Hyland.**

CHAPTER FOUR- THE JOKER WENT WILD

We watched the girl's house cautiously.

"Dean, I cannot believe you told Papazian about the homicidal phantom clown," Sam let out an exasperated sigh.

"I told him an urban legend about a homicidal phantom clown, I never said it was real," Dean pulled out a gun and cocked it.

"Keep that down!" Sam hissed, pushing Dean's hand down.

"Oh, and get this," Dean ignored him.

"I mentioned the Bunker Brother's Circus in '81 and their, uh, evil clown apocalypse? Guess what?"

"What?"

"Before Mr. Cooper owned Cooper Carnival, he worked for Bunker Brothers. He was their lot manager."

~Supernatural~

I dozed lightly, grumbling when Dean shook me awake.

A light flicked on in the dining room.

The little girl went to the front door, letting in the phantom clown.

We crept inside after her, hiding in wait.

"Wanna see Mommy and Daddy?" The girl chirped happily. "They're upstairs."

Sam leapt out and grabbed the girl, and I hung on to her as she started screaming.

Dean shot the clown in the chest.

It fell on it's back, vaulting up as Dean cocked the gun again, jumping through the window.

The girl's parents rushed down the stairs.

"What's going on out here?"

"Oh my god," The mother opened her mouth, horrified.

"What are you doing to my daughter?"

Sam grabbed my hand and tugged me along.

We fled.

Over my shoulder I could hear the girl wail.

"He shot my clown!"

~Supernatural~

Dean parked the minivan off the side of the road, digging out everything in the trunk.

Sam pried off the license plate.

"You really think they saw our plates?"

"I don't want to take the chance," Dean kicked the side of the van.

"Besides, I hate this friggin' thing anyway."

We started walking down the road.

"Well, one thing's for sure," Dean slowed slightly.

"What's that?" Sam followed suit.

"We're not dealing with a spirit. I mean, that rock salt hit something solid."

"Yeah, a person?" I looked at Dean questioningly.

"Or maybe a creature that can make itself invisible?"

"Yeah, and dresses up as a clown for kicks?" Dean raised an eyebrow.

"Sam, see anything in Dad's journal?"

"Nope," Sam pulled out his cell phone.

"Who are you calling?"

"Maybe Ellen or that guy Ash'll know something."

Sam coughed awkwardly.

"Hey, you think, uh, you think Dad and Ellen ever had a thing?"

Dean snorted. "No way."

"Then why didn't he tell us about her?" Sam looked expectantly at Dean.

"I don't know," Dean shrugged. "Maybe they had some falling out."

"Yeah," Sam breathed out tiredly.

"You ever notice Dad had a falling out with just about everybody?"

Dean nodded casually.

Sam lowered the phone. "Well, don't get all maudlin on me, man."

"What do you mean?"

Sam huffed. "I mean this 'strong silent' thing of yours, it's crap."

Dean looked heavenward. "Oh, god."

"I'm over it," Sam stopped in his tracks.

"This isn't just anyone we're talking about, this is Dad. I know how you felt about the man."

"You know what, back off, alright?" Dean snapped. "Just because I'm not caring and sharing like you want me to."

"No, no, no," Sam splayed out his hands.

"That's not what this is about, Dean. I don't care how you deal with this. But you have to _deal_ with it, man. Listen, I'm your brother, alright? I just want to make sure you're okay."

"Dean," I spoke up uncertainly, quailing under his angry gaze.

"It's not my place, but please. Listen to him. Your dad wouldn't have wanted this. He'd have wanted you to be okay."

"Dude," Dean glared at us both.

"I'm okay, okay? I swear, the next person who asks me if I'm okay, I'm going to start throwing punches. These are your issues, Sam, don't dump them on me!"

"What are you talking about?"

"I just think it's really interesting, this sudden obedience you have to Dad." Dean spat.

"It's like, oh, what would Dad want me to do? Sam, you spent your entire life slugging it out with that man. I mean, hell, you, you picked a fight with him the last time you ever saw him. And now that he's dead, now you want to make it right? Well, I'm sorry, Sam, but you can't. It's too little, too late."

Sam flinched. "Why are you saying this to me?"

"Because I want you to be honest with yourself about this," Dean yelled.

"I'm dealing with Dad's death! Are you?"

~Supernatural~

"Thanks," Sam cut the phone.

"Rakshasa," He told us.

"What's that?"

"Ellen's best guess," Sam avoided Dean's gaze.

"It's a race of ancient Hindu creatures, they appear in human form, they feed on human flesh, they can make themselves invisible, and cannot enter a home without being invited first."

"So they dress up like clowns, and the children invite them in," Dean nodded.

"Yeah."

"Why don't they just munch on the kids?"

"No idea," Sam shrugged. "Not enough meat on the bones, maybe?"

I felt faintly nauseated.

"What else'd you find out?"

"Well, apparently, rakshasas live in squalor. They sleep on a bed of dead insects." Sam looked at Dean, finally.

"Nice," Dean said.

"Yeah, and they have to feed a few times every twenty or thirty years," Sam shuffled forward.

"Slow metabolism, I guess."

"Well, that makes sense," Dean pursed his lips.

"I mean, the Carnival today, the Bunker Brothers' in '81."

"Right."

"Hey, Sam, who do we know that worked both shows?"

"Cooper?" Sam cocked an eyebrow.

"Cooper," Dean confirmed.

"You know, that picture of his father, that looked just like him."

"You think maybe it was him?"

"Well, who knows how old he is?"

Dean looked back at him.

"Ellen say how to kill him?"

"Uh," Sam paused. "Legend goes, a dagger made of pure brass."

"I think I know where to get one of those," Dean caught hold of my arm.

"We'll go round up the blade, you go check if Cooper's got bedbugs."

~Supernatural~

The man tapped the trunk with his cane.

"Check in there."

Dean opened it, and I froze when I saw a red clown wig.

We stilled, and Dean shoved me behind him.

"You?"

He dropped his cane, throwing off the sunglasses.

It waved, disappearing from view.

Dean struggled with the door out of the trailer.

A knife flew past his head, burying itself in the door.

The second stopped an inch away from my throat.

"All right!"

He managed to get the door open, tumbling out with me in tow.

Sam caught up with us.

"Hey! So, Cooper thinks I'm a peeping tom, but it's not him."

"Yeah, so I gathered," Dean eyed the trailer warily.

"It's the blind guy, he's here somewhere."

"Well, did you get the-"

Dean interrupted him. "The brass blades? No, it's been one of those days."

"I got an idea. Come on."

We followed Sam to the funhouse.

A door slammed shut between us.

It would not open.

"Sam!"

'Dean!" He called back. "Dean, find the maze, okay?"

We moved forward carefully.

"Hey! Where is it?"

"I don't know," Dean was frustrated.

"I mean, shouldn't we see its clothes walking around?"

Right on cue, two knives pinned us to the wall.

"Sam!"

Sam pulled a pipe all the way off, stalking forward slowly.

A knife flew at his head, and he ducked reflexively.

"Dean, where is it?"

"I don't know." He reached up and pulled a lever.

Steam poured from the pipe organ, giving a vague shape to the invisible attacker.

We were trapped.

It advanced, then stopped abruptly as a pipe cut through his chest.

A pipe held by a tan-sleeved arm.

Castiel let go of the bloody clothes.

We crashed to the ground.

~Supernatural~

Dean was working on the Impala again, and Sam paced nearby.

"You were right," Sam said quietly.

Dean slid out from under the car.

"About what?"

"About me and Dad." Sam inhaled deeply.

"I'm sorry that the last time I was with him I tried to pick a fight. I'm sorry that I spent most of my life angry at him. I mean, for all I know, he died thinking that I hate him. So you're right. What I'm doing right now, it's too little. It's too late."

He waited a beat.

"I miss him, man. And I feel guilty as hell. And I'm not alright. Not at all. But neither are you. That much I know."

Sam paused.

"I'll let you get back to work."

He strode away, disappearing from view in minutes.

I followed more slowly, freezing when I heard the sound of smashing glass.

I ran back to Dean.

He was slamming a crowbar into the trunk of the Impala.

I caught his out flung arm, flinching back from the sheer anger in Dean's expression.

I did not let go.

"Dean, enough." I hung on tightly.

You're scaring Sam. You're scaring me. Please. Stop it."

His lip trembled as he stared after where Sam had gone.

The crowbar clattered to the ground.

I waited, summoning up my courage, and put an arm lightly around his shoulder.

Dean jerked in surprise, but did not shake me off.

He let me pull him away from the car, nearer to Bobby's house.

"It's going to be fine, Dean," I whispered. "Just hang on."

John's last words echoed through my head.

_Take care of my boys, you hear me?_

I would.

I'd made a promise, after all.


	5. Through The Eyes Of The Dead

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Garideth- It was more of a reluctantly received arm on the shoulder, if you know what I mean. :)**

**XKaterinaNightingale- Yup, he really needed a hug in this episode!**

**ccgnme-Thank you! She might…. I haven't really thought about it yet…..**

**Chapter name borrowed from Bloodlust. **

CHAPTER FIVE- THROUGH THE EYES OF THE DEAD

The Impala sped down a two-lane, shiny and newly repaired.

Dean was in a good mood, singing along with his music.

I smiled slightly.

It worried me when they were upset.

My smile widened as Castiel's nose wrinkled in distaste at the song.

"Whoo!" Dean grinned.

"Listen to her purr! Have you ever heard anything so sweet?"

Sam rolled his eyes. "You know, if you two want to get a room, just let me know, Dean."

"Oh, don't listen to him, baby," Dean patted the dashboard. "He doesn't understand us."

Sam laughed. "You're in a good mood."

"Why shouldn't I be?"

"No reason," Sam hid his relieved smile.

"Got my car, got a case, things are looking up." Dean stretched back in his seat.

"Wow," Sam said sarcastically. "You hear a couple of severed heads and a pile of dead cows and you're Mr. Sunshine."

"I do not understand your definition of 'things are looking up'," Castiel glanced at Dean perplexedly.

I couldn't control my laugh at that.

Dean ignored him.

"How far to Red Lodge?"

"Uh," I looked at my map. "About three hundred miles."

"Good."

The Impala raced down the road.

~Supernatural~

I sat outside the sheriff's office with Castiel, waiting for Dean and Sam to finish talking with him.

I looked at Castiel curiously, the questions already on the tip of my tongue.

He shifted towards me.

"What do you wish to ask me?"

I blushed, wondering if I was always this transparent.

"This demon," I looked down. "It said I had powers. That I was stronger than Sam, and that it wanted me on it's side."

I finally looked up. "Was it telling the truth?"

Castiel's eyes were cool and detached.

"I don't know, Odette."

~Supernatural~

We entered the morgue, and I shuddered.

Dean and Sam had donned white lab coats.

Dean looked at the intern on duty calculatingly.

"John."

"Jeff," He replied.

"Jeff," Dean nodded. "I know that. Dr. Dworkin needs to see you in his office right away."

Jeff raised his eyebrow. "But Dr. Dworkin's on vacation."

"Well, he's back," Dean didn't miss a beat.

"And he's pissed, and he's screaming for you, man, so if I were you I would…."

Jeff ran off.

Dean looked at Sam.

"Hey, those Satanists in Florida, they marked their victims, didn't they?"

"Yeah," Sam confirmed. "Reversed pentacle on the forehead."

Dean tossed us the latex gloves.

Castiel looked at his suspiciously.

I suppressed a chuckle.

Sam opened a compartment and wheeled out a corpse.

He looked at the box between its legs.

I averted my gaze, sliding behind Castiel.

"All right, open it," Dean waited expectantly.

Sam did not move. "You open it."

"Wuss," Dean smirked, carrying the box over to another table, flipping off the lid, grimacing.

Sam approached, and I followed reluctantly, cringing.

"Well, no pentagram," Dean commented, unruffled.

"Wow." Sam winced. "Poor girl."

"Maybe we should, uh," Dean cleared his throat.

"You know, look in her mouth, see if those wackos stuffed anything down her throat. You know, kinda like Moth in Silence of The Lambs."

"Yeah, here, go ahead," Sam pushed the box to Dean.

Dean stepped back. "No, you go ahead."

"What?"

"'Put the lotion in the basket,'" Dean hedged.

Sam huffed. "Right, yeah, I'm the wuss, huh?"

"I do not understand the problem," Castiel, unimpressed by their bickering, took the box and stuck his fingers in the girl's mouth.

I turned away at once, face turning green.

The tips of my ears flushed pink as Dean snickered.

"Look."

Castiel pressed on the gum and a narrow, sharp tooth descended.

"It's a tooth," Sam stated a little unnecessarily.

"It's a fang, Samuel," Castiel straightened. "A vampire fang."

By now, Sam had gotten used to Castiel's ways, so he did not object to his calling him Samuel.

"This changes things."

"Ya think?" Dean asked sarcastically.

~Supernatural~

Dean and Sam headed to the bar, and I waited outside with Castiel.

"You're fond of them."

It wasn't a question.

"Yeah, I guess so, Castiel."

I smiled uncertainly.

I didn't add that I cared about him, too.

Castiel opened his mouth, as if to say something more, when Sam and Dean came out of the bar.

"Let's go," We followed Dean down an alleyway.

"Wait."

Castiel turned on his heel, pinning the man I'd seen entering the bar against the wall.

Dean pressed a knife against his throat.

"Smile."

"What?" The man looked in disbelief at Dean.

"Show us those pearly whites."

"Oh for the love of- you want to stick that thing someplace else?" He rolled his eyes.

"I'm not a vampire."

Sam frowned.

"Yeah, that's right. I heard you guys in there."

"What do you know about vampires?" Sam demanded.

"How to kill them, obviously," He sighed.

"Now seriously, bro. That knife's making me itch."

Dean inclined his head.

The man started to pull away, and Sam pinned him harder.

"Whoa. Easy there, chachi," He slowly brought up his hand to his lip, pulling it back to reveal normal gums.

"See? Fangless. Happy?"

Dean let him up.

"Now. Who the hell are you?"

~Supernatural~

"So, um, so those two vampires, they were yours, huh?"

"Yep," The man named Gordon nodded at Sam.

"Been here two weeks."

"Did you check out that Barker farm?"

"It's a bust," Gordon shook his head.

"Just a bunch of hippie freaks. Though they could kill you with that patchouli smell alone."

"Where's the nest, then?" Dean asked impatiently.

"I've got this one covered. Look, don't get me wrong, it's a real pleasure meetin' you fellas. But I've been on this thing over a year. I killed a fang back in Austin, tracked it all the way up here. I'll finish it."

"We could help," Dean offered.

"Thanks, but uh," Gordon hesitated. "I'm kind of a go-it-alone type of guy."

I looked at Gordon uneasily.

He unsettled me.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Castiel eying Gordon with ill-concealed suspicion.

"Come on, man." Dean sounded frustrated. "I've been itching for a hunt."

"Sorry," Gordon got into his car.

"But hey, I hear there's a chupacabra two states over. You go ahead and knock yourselves out."

~Supernatural~

After Dean had saved Gordon from nearly being decapitated, he'd warmed up a lot more.

Sam sat back, arms folded.

Dean's reaction had stunned both of us.

"Dean," Gordon laughed. "You gave that big-ass fang one hell of a haircut, my friend."

"Thank you," Dean slurped his beer.

"That was beautiful. Absolutely beautiful."

"Yep," Dean looked over to us. "You all right, Sammy?"

"I'm fine."

He wasn't.

"Well, lighten up a little, Sammy."

I stopped the urge to snap at Gordon.

Sam indicated Dean and me.

"Only they get to call me that."

Color flooded my cheeks in pleasure.

"Okay. No offense meant." Gordon held up his hands.

I twitched uncomfortably in the awkward silence.

"I'd better go," I stood up quickly. "I'll get back to the hotel."

Sam looked as if he very much wanted to join me.

I stepped out of the diner.

"I don't like him."

I squeaked in alarm as Castiel appeared behind me.

"What?"

"I don't like him," He repeated slowly. "His soul. It's empty and dark. Hollow. Stay away from him."

Castiel promptly disappeared.

I walked back the distance to the hotel, dropping the keys on a hook.

I bought a soda from a vending machine, walking back to my room.

I paused as something rustled behind me, cautiously opening the door.

I leant against it, relieved.

A dark figure jumped me from the corner of the room, slamming a heavy telephone into the back of my head.

I fell to the ground.

~Supernatural~

When I came to, I was bound and gagged, a sack over my head.

The bartender I'd seen earlier pulled it off roughly.

He bared his fangs, and I struggled against the rope.

As the vampire advanced, a woman appeared in the doorway.

"Wait! Step back, Eli."

Eli pulled back, retracting his fangs.

The woman walked over, removing my gag.

"My name's Lenore," She took a step forward.

"I'm not going to hurt you. We just need to talk."

"Talk?" I kicked against the chair. "Yeah, okay, but I might have a tough time paying much attention to much besides Eli's teeth!"

Eli hissed at me.

"He won't hurt you either," Lenore promised. "You have my word."

"Your word?" I stared at her in disbelief.

"Oh, yeah, great, thanks. Listen lady, no offense, but you're not the first vampire I've met."

"We're not like the others," Lenore held back a glaring Eli.

"We don't kill humans, and we don't drink their blood. We haven't for a long time."

I laughed. "What is this, some kind of joke?"

"Notice you're still alive," She looked at me pointedly.

"Okay," I blinked.

"Uh, correct me if I'm wrong here, but shouldn't you be starving to death?"

"We've found other ways," Lenore glanced at Eli. "Cattle blood."

My eyes widened.

"You're telling me you're responsible for all the-"

"It's not ideal," She cut me off.

"In fact, it's disgusting. But it allows us to get by."

"Okay, uh, why?"

"Survival," Lenore said flatly.

"No deaths, no missing locals, no reason for people like you to come looking for people like us. We blend in. Our kind is nearly extinct. Turns out we're not as high on the food chain as we imagined."

"Why are we explaining ourselves to this killer?" Eli spat.

"She's a child, Eli," Lenore replied quietly. "She hasn't killed anybody."

Wrong.

Eli ignored her.

"We choke on cow's blood so that none of them suffer," He raged.

"Tonight they murdered Conrad and they celebrated."

"Eli, that's enough," Lenore answered calmly.

"Yeah, Eli, that's enough."

I spoke too soon.

He backhanded me across the face with enough force to make my chair buckle.

I tried not to wince as I felt my lip tear.

"So much for your word," I spat out blood.

"Eli!" Lenore tackled him down to the ground. "She's just a child!"

She looked up at me.

"What's done is done. We're leaving this town tonight."

I glanced warily at Eli.

"Then why did you bring me here? Why are you even talking to me?"

"Believe me," She kept a hand on Eli's shoulder.

"I'd rather not. But you're not like the rest of them. Once they have the scent, they'll keep tracking us, it doesn't matter where we go. Hunters will find us."

I understood at once.

"You're asking us not to follow you."

"We have a right to live," Lenore's eyes burned into mine.

"We're not hurting anyone."

I wanted to believe her.

"Right, so you keep saying, but give me one good reason why I should believe you."

"Fine." She crossed her arms.

"You know what I'm going to do? I'm going to let you go."

I looked at her, startled.

Lenore addressed the other two vampires.

"Take her back. Not another mark on her."

~Supernatural~

I could hear them from the hallway.

"Where the hell is she!"

"I don't know, Dean, the vampires must have taken her, I've looked everywhere."

"We better find her fast."

"No need," I finally entered the room.

They froze for a second, staring at me.

The next minute, Sam hugged me tightly.

I squeezed him back, surprised and pleased.

"Where were you? We've been looking for you for two hours, I've been worried sick!"

He held on a little longer before letting go.

Dean growled when he saw my face, grabbing my chin in his hands.

"Who did this?"

I winced. "A vampire named Eli."

Dean let go.

"Let's go hunt the bastard down, then."

"Wait!"

Dean cocked his head to one side. "How'd you get out, anyway?"

He blinked rapidly. "Did you k-"

"No," I interrupted quickly. "I didn't kill anybody!"

Dean huffed. "Well, they didn't just let you go, Odette."

"That's exactly what they did," I sat down on the bed.

"Maybe we should rethink this hunt," I bit my lip.

"I don't think they're like other vampires, I don't think they're killing people."

Dean sniggered incredulously.

"You're joking. How do they stay alive, then?"

"The cattle mutilations. They said they live off animal blood."

Dean's eyebrows shot up to his hairline.

"And you believed them?"

I stood up.

"Look at me, Dean. They let me go."

"Dean," Sam sounded uncertain. "Maybe she's right."

"She's not," Dean kicked the table in frustration. "They're all the same, okay? Gordon's been on these vamps for a year, he knows."

"Gordon?" Sam scoffed.

"Yes."

"You're taking his word for it?"

Dean flexed his jaw. "That's right."

"Ellen says he's bad news."

I turned to Sam at that.

"Castiel said we should stay away from him, Dean," I added.

"And we're supposed to listen to them?"

Dean turned his back on us.

Sam got to his feet, evidently having had enough.

"You don't think I can see what this is?"

"What are you talking about?" Dean's voice was dangerously low.

"He's a substitute for Dad, isn't he?" Sam looked at him. "A poor one."

"Shut up, Sam," His tone held a warning.

"He's not even close, Dean," Sam continued. "Not on his best day."

"You know what?" Dean snatched up the keys.

"I'm not even going to talk about this."

Sam stopped him.

"You know, you slap on this big fake smile but I can see right through it," Sam pushed forward. "Because I know how you feel, Dean. Dad's dead. And he left a hole, and it hurts so bad you can't take it, but you can't just fill up that hole with whoever you want to. It's an insult to his memory."

"Okay," Dean punched Sam hard in the face.

I sprang up, pulling Sam away.

"You hit me all you want," Sam didn't rise to the bait.

"It won't change anything."

Dean glared at us.

"I'm going to that nest." He scowled at me. "You don't want to tell me where it is, fine."

"I'll find it myself."

Dean banged the door shut after him.


	6. The Truest Shade Of Crimson

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Garideth- Yup, I hate his guts too! I'm so happy Sam ganked him!**

**captainbartholomew-Thank you! Yes, nobody likes Gordon.**

**ccgnme-Yeah, it's been a year, right? They've got to be worried!**

**XKaterinaNightingaleX- Thank you!**

**Chapter name borrowed from… I really don't know. *embarrassed expression***

CHAPTER SIX- THE TRUEST SHADE OF CRIMSON

Dean returned to the motel room.

Gordon was gone.

"Gordon?"

"You think he went after them?" Sam followed Dean.

"Probably," Dean shrugged.

"Dean, we have to stop him," I caught hold of his sleeve.

He shook me off.

"Really, Odette? Because I say we lend a hand."

"Just give me the benefit of the doubt, would you? Please."

Dean gritted his teeth. "Yeah, we'll see. I'll drive. Give me the keys."

Sam pointed to the table where I'd set them earlier.

"He snaked the keys."

…

Dean hotwired the car, grimacing.

"I can't believe this. I just fixed her up, too."

The Impala finally started.

"So, the bridge," He looked at me. "Is that all you got?"

I thought back to the drive.

"The bridge was four and a half minutes from their farm."

"How do you know?"

I blinked at Dean.

"I, uh, I counted."

There was silence.

I traced a path on the map on my lap.

"They took a left out of the farm, then turned right onto a dirt road, followed that for two minutes slightly up a hill, then took another quick right and we hit the bridge."

Dean huffed in surprise.

"Not bad, kid. Not bad at all."

~Supernatural~

Gordon's red car crossed the bridge and turned up a small road.

Some way behind, my eyes narrowed.

I had a bad feeling about this.

I sighed, staring at the map.

Sam glanced at me worriedly, frowning at Dean.

Dean drove faster.

…

We crept in quietly.

Gordon dipped his knife into a jar of dead man's blood, moving forward.

Lenore was pale and sickly, covered in cuts and defenseless, tied up in a chair.

He circled her, slicing the bloody knife across her chest.

She gasped in pain.

We entered the room.

"Hey, guys," Gordon turned to us. "Come on in."

"Hey, Gordon," Dean grinned convincingly. "What's going on?"

"Just poisoning Lenore here with some dead man's blood," Gordon paced before her.

"She's going to tell us where her little friends are, aren't you?" He stroked her hair.

"Want to help?"

"Look, man," Dean surveyed the room warily.

"Grab a knife, I was just about to start in on the fingers."

He dragged it across her arm.

The bile rose in my throat.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Dean laughed uneasily.

"Hey, let's all just chill out, huh?"

"I'm completely chill," Gordon ignored him.

Sam apparently had had enough.

"Put the knife down, Gordon."

He stepped towards him, but Dean stopped him with a hand on his chest.

"Sounds like it's Sam here who needs to chill," Gordon narrowed his eyes.

"Just step away from her, all right?" I spoke up for the first time since entering the room.

He sneered at me. "And why should I listen to you, little girl?"

Dean reflexively pulled me behind him.

"But you're right, I'm wasting my time here. This bitch will never talk. Might as well put her out of her misery."

Gordon pulled out a larger knife.

"I just sharpened it, so it's completely humane," He reassured us.

He turned towards Lenore again, and Sam stepped to block him.

"Gordon, I'm letting her go."

Gordon pointed the knife at Sam's chest, stopping him.

"You're not doing a damn thing."

"Hey, hey, hey," Dean moved up a step.

"Gordon, let's talk about this."

"What's there to talk about?" He did not lower the knife. "It's like I said, Dean. No shades of gray."

"Yeah, I hear ya," Dean nodded slowly. "And I know how you feel."

"Do you?"

"That vampire that killed your sister deserved to die, but this one….."

Gordon laughed mirthlessly.

"Killed my sister? That filthy fang didn't kill my sister, it turned her. So I hunted her down, and killed her myself."

"You did what?" Dean was horrified.

"It wasn't my sister anymore," Gordon looked away. "It wasn't human. I didn't blink. And neither would you."

He was wrong.

Dean would never do something like that.

It was with a slow roll of nausea that it hit me.

"You knew all along, didn't you?" I stared at him in disgust.

"You knew about the vampires, you knew they weren't killing anyone. You knew about the cattle. And you just didn't care."

"Care about what?" Gordon spat.

"A nest of vampires suddenly acting nice? Taking a little time out from sucking innocent people? And we're supposed to buy that? Trust me. Doesn't change who they are. And I can prove it."

He grabbed my arm, slicing the knife across it, laying it against my throat.

Gordon dragged me to Lenore.

Dean pulled his gun.

"Let her go!"

"Now!" Sam yelled, drawing his own.

"Relax," Gordon tugged me forward.

"If I wanted to kill her, she'd already be on the floor. Just making a little point."

He held my arm over Lenore, and the blood dripped on her face.

She hissed, extending her fangs.

"Hey!" Dean glared at him.

"That's enough! Let her go!" Sam clenched his fists.

"You think she's so different?" Gordon pressed the knife into my throat.

"Still want to save her? Look at her. They're all the same. Evil, bloodthirsty."

Lenore retracted her fangs, turning her face away.

"No. No!"

"You hear that, Gordon?" Sam tensed.

"No! No!"

Sam pushed Gordon away from me.

"We're done here."

"Sam," Dean pulled me towards him. "Get her out of here."

"Yeah," Sam lifted Lenore up in his arms.

Gordon took a step towards him, but Dean had the gun trained on him.

"Uh-uh," Dean shook his head. "Gordon, I think you and I have got some things to talk about."

"Get out of my way," He snarled.

"Sorry."

"You're not serious," Gordon said in disbelief.

"I'm having a hard time believing it too, but I know what I saw. If you want those vampires, you've gotta go though me."

"Fine." He jammed his knife into the table.

Dean looked at the knife, considering.

He pulled the clip out of his gun and set it aside.

Gordon punched him.

"What are you doing, man? You doing this for a fang? Come on, Dean, we're on the same side here."

"I don't think so, you sadistic bastard."

Gordon threw him across the room.

"You're not like your brother. You're a killer, like me."

I tripped Gordon up, and Dean kicked him down, hauling him against the wall.

Dean elbowed him in the face, knocking him out.

"You know, I might be like you, and I might not. But you're the one tied up right now."

~Supernatural~

"You did the right thing, you know."

I turned around to see Castiel, inscrutable as ever.

"I know."

He cocked his head to one side.

"Why do you care so much?"

I considered his question.

"I'm sick of innocent people dying, Castiel."


	7. Embalmed, Yet I Breathe

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Garideth- Yup, Sam was really badass in that one!**

**XKaterinaNightingale- Thank you! Yeah, I figured it would be nice! **

**ccgnme- Thank you! I know, I do too!**

**Chapter name borrowed from Necrophagia.**

CHAPTER SEVEN- EMBALMED, YET I BREATHE

Castiel's voice partially roused me, but I kept my eyes closed.

"Is this normal?"

He sounded slightly discomfited, and I sleepily wondered what had broken through his impassive exterior.

Dean sniggered. "Ask her when she wakes up, Feathers."

Sam hid his amusement unsuccessfully.

"Push her off if you're uncomfortable, Castiel."

I finally opened my eyes to see what the fuss was about, and promptly turned scarlet.

Somewhere along the line, my head had landed on Castiel's shoulder.

I pulled away at once.

"Sorry," I stammered shamefacedly.

For an angel who didn't understand human customs, he was quite calm.

"It is not of import."

"Look at her face!" Dean said gleefully. "It's like a tomato!"

Sam looked at me apologetically as Dean burst into song.

"Odette and Castiel, sitting in a tree, K- I- S- S -I -N- G!"

I hid my face in the upholstery.

~Supernatural~

Sam pulled a set of dogtags out of his pocket, kneeling at his mother's headstone.

"I think, um, I think Dad would have wanted you to have these."

He buried them into the ground.

"I love you, Mom."

I cringed, backing away from Sam, trying to block out the memories.

Castiel looked my way, and I froze.

He saw too much.

I glanced at Dean, frowning next to a dying tree.

He moved to it, seeing a perfect circle of dead grass surrounding the grave.

Later, Dean took a card from a man in a suit, walking over to us.

"Angela Mason. She was a student at the local college, funeral was three days ago."

"And?" Sam raised an eyebrow.

"And? You saw her grave," Dean pointed to it.

"Everything dead around it, in a perfect circle? You don't think that's a little weird?"

"Maybe the groundskeeper went a little agro with the pesticide," Sam said doubtfully.

"No, I asked him," Dean looked at the grave edgily.

"No pesticide, no chemicals. Nobody can explain it."

"Okay, so what are you thinking?" Sam waited expectantly.

"I dunno," Dean shrugged. "Unholy ground, maybe?"

Castiel looked slightly amused.

"Un-"

"What?" Dean ignored Sam. "If something evil happened there, it could easily poison the ground. Remember the farm outside of Cedar Rapids?"

"Yeah, b-"

Dean cut him off.

"Could be the sign of a demonic presence. Or the Angela girl's spirit, if it's powerful enough."

Sam nodded, turning away.

"Well, don't get to excited," Dean sniped. "You might pull something."

"It's just…." Sam looked uncertain.

"Stumbling onto a hunt? Here, of all places?"

"So?"

"So?" Sam scuffed the heel of his shoe into the ground.

"Are you sure this is about a hunt, and not about something else?"

"What else would it be about?"

Dean looked close to getting angry, and I decided to intervene.

"Dean, maybe you-"

He interrupted me.

"Just stop, okay? It's none of your damn business! Leave me alone!"

I flinched away.

Dean ignored me.

"You believe what you want, Sam, but I let you drag my ass out here, the least we could do is check this out."

~Supernatural~

We knocked on the door of Dr. Mason's office.

He stepped out, looking at us curiously.

"Dr. Mason?"

"Yes?"

Sam stepped forward.

"I'm Sam, this is Dean and Odette. We were friends of Angela's, we….. we wanted to offer our condolences."

"Please, come in."

We entered the somber room, and Dr. Mason showed us a photo album.

In the corner, Dean looked through an old book.

"She was beautiful," Sam hooked a finger around a page.

"Yes, she was."

"This is an unusual book," Dean showed the cover of the copy he'd been reading.

It was covered with Greek letters and a triangular symbol.

"It's Ancient Greek, I teach a course," Dr. Mason said wearily.

"So, a car accident," Dean blinked. "That's, that's horrible."

"Angie was only a mile away from home when, uh," Dr. Mason trailed off.

"It's gotta be hard, losing someone like that. Sometimes it's like they're still around. Almost like you can still sense their presence."

We both looked up at Dean.

"You ever feel anything like that?"

Dr. Mason eyed him oddly.

"I do, as a matter of fact."

Sam glanced pointedly at Dean.

"That's perfectly normal, Dr. Mason. Especially with what you're going through."

He sighed.

"You know, I still phone her. And the phone's still ringing before I remember that…uh…. family's everything, you know? Angie was the most important thing in my life. And now, I'm just lost without her."

"We're very sorry," I told him.

~Supernatural~

"I'm telling you, there's something going on here," Dean insisted.

"We just haven't found it yet."

Sam sighed.

"Dean, so far, you've got a patch of dead grass and nothing."

Dean glared at him.

"Well, something turned that grave into unholy ground."

Sam rolled his eyes.

"There's no reason for it to be unholy ground. Angela Mason was a nice girl who died in a car crash, that's not exactly vengeful spirit material. You heard her father."

"Yeah, well, maybe daddy doesn't know everything there is to know about his little angel, huh?"

"You know what?" Sam stood up.

"We never should have bothered that poor man. We shouldn't even be here anymore."

"So what, Sam?" Dean demanded. "We just bail? Without even figuring out what's going on?"

They looked at me, almost as if for a third opinion.

I shrugged.

"It's not my business, I guess," I avoided Dean's gaze.

He might have looked guilty, but it was probably my imagination.

Sam frowned at him.

"I think I know what's going on here. It's the only reason I went along with you this far."

Dean's eyebrow climbed upwards.

"What are you talking about?"

"This is about Mom's grave," Sam crossed his arms.

Dean scoffed. "That's got nothing to do with it."

Sam scowled.

"You wouldn't step within a hundred yards of it. Look. Maybe you're imagining a hunt where there isn't one so you don't have to think about Mom. Or Dad."

Dean turned to look at him.

"You wanna take another swing?" Sam held out his arms. "Go ahead, if it'll make you feel better."

"I don't need this crap," Dean snarled, grabbing his jacket and keys.

"Where are you going?"

Dean did not look back.

"I'm going to go get a drink. Alone."

The door banged shut behind him.

~Supernatural~

"Okay," Dean glowered at Sam. "I was working my imaginary case. Didn't find much."

Sam nodded, unsurprised.

"Yeah. Except Angela's boyfriend died last night. Slit his own throat. But, you know, that's normal. Uh, let's see, what else. Oh, he was seeing Angela everywhere before he died. But you know, I'm sure that's just me transferring my own feelings."

Sam held up a hand.

"Okay, I get it. I'm sorry, maybe there is something going on here."

"Maybe?" Dean snapped. "I know how to do my job, Sam, despite what you might think."

…

"You should be with them right now."

I turned around to look at Castiel wordlessly.

"You made a promise."

I laughed bitterly.

"How am I supposed to do that when Dean doesn't even like me, Castiel? Let alone trust me."

I looked away from him.

"I don't blame him. Maybe it's better if I just go."

I curled up on the bed.

The bedsprings squeaked as Castiel sat down some distance away from me.

I glanced up as a thought struck me.

"If I go, Castiel, will you be here?"

His eyes seemed a fraction warmer.

"I won't leave, Odette."

My lips tugged upward slightly.

"Thanks, Castiel."

~Supernatural~

Dean and Sam dug up Angela's grave.

Standing on the coffin, Dean cleared the rest of the dirt off and turned to Sam.

"Ladies first."

I huffed, slightly annoyed.

Sam tossed his flashlight to Dean.

He opened the coffin, wincing in preparation.

It was empty.


	8. Living Dead Girl

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Garideth- Thank you! Yeah, I was just itching to write it! **

**ccgnme- Yeah, I think he deserved it! Thank you!**

**captainbartholomew- I could tell you, but where's the fun in that? :P **

**XKaterinaNightingaleX- Thank you! The next chapter should be up tomorrow!**

**Chapter name borrowed from Rob Zombie.**

CHAPTER EIGHT- LIVING DEAD GIRL

Dean pounded heavily on Dr. Mason's door, agitated.

"Dean," Sam pulled him back. "Take it easy, okay?"

Dr. Mason opened the door, starting in surprise when he saw us again.

"You're Angie's friends, right?"

"Dr. Mason," I began gently.

Dean cut me off harshly.

"We need to talk."

…

"You teach Ancient Greek," Dean flung down the paper on which he'd scrawled the symbols.

"Tell me, what are these?"

"I don't understand," Dr. Mason shook his head. "You said this had something to do with Angela."

"It does," Dean tried to smile convincingly. "Please, just humor me."

He looked down at the paper.

"They're part of an ancient divination ritual."

"Used for necromancy, right?" Dean crossed his arms.

"That's right," Dr. Mason nodded.

"See, before we came over here we stopped by the library and did a little homework ourselves. Apparently, they used rituals like this one for communicating with the dead. Even bringing corpses back to life. Full on zombie action."

"Yes," He looked at us confusedly. "I mean, according to the legends. Now, what's all this about?"

Sam and I watched his face.

He didn't seem to be lying.

Dean worked his jaw.

"I think you know."

"Dean." Sam looked at him apprehensively.

He ignored Sam.

"Look, I get it, okay? There are people that I would give anything to see again. But what gives you the right?"

"Dean!" Sam exclaimed, louder now.

Dr. Mason looked at us blankly.

"What are you talking about?"

Dean banged his hand down on the table.

"What's dead should stay dead!"

This was going too far.

"Stop it!" I tugged on Dean's arm.

Dean didn't listen.

"What you brought back isn't even your daughter anymore. These things are vicious, they're violent, they're so nasty they rot the ground around them. I mean, come on, haven't you seen Pet Cemetery?"

Dr. Mason placed the chair in front of him.

"You're insane."

"Where is she?"

"Get out of my house."

He dialed the phone.

Dean knocked it out of his hand.

"I know you're hiding her somewhere. Where is she?"

"Dean! Stop, that's enough! Dean, look!"

Sam grabbed Dean's jacket, pointing to a row of plants by the window.

"See? Beautiful, living plants."

"We're leaving," he told Dr. Mason.

"I'm calling the police," Dr. Mason picked up his phone.

Dean pulled out of Sam's grip, storming out the door.

"Sir, we're so sorry," I looked apologetically at him.

"We won't bother you again."

Dean strode down the steps along the sidewalk, and we hurried after him.

"What the hell is the matter with you, Dean?" Sam demanded.

"Back off," Dean snarled.

"That man is innocent!" Sam spread his arms out. "He didn't deserve that!"

Dean overrode his objections.

"Okay, so she's not here, maybe he's keeping her somewhere else."

"Stop it!" Sam stopped Dean from moving.

"That's enough, okay? Enough!"

Dean shrugged out of his grasp.

"Sam, I know what I'm doing."

"No, you don't. At all." Sam refused to let go. "Dean, I don't scare easy, but man, you're scaring the crap out of me."

He wasn't the only one.

"Don't be overdramatic, Sam."

Sam ignored him.

"You're lucky this turned out to be a real case. Because if it wasn't you would have just found something else to kill."

"Wha-"

He cut across Dean.

"You're on edge, you're erratic- except for when you're hunting, because then you're downright scary. You're tailspinning, man, and you won't let me help you. You won't let anyone help you."

Dean turned away from him.

"I can take care of myself, thanks."

"No, you can't," Sam crossed his arms.

"And you know what? You're the only one who thinks you should have to. You don't have to handle this on your own, Dean, no one can."

Dean clenched his fists.

"Sam, if you bring up Dad's death one more time I swear…"

Sam interrupted him.

"Stop. Please, Dean, it's killing you. Please. We've already lost Dad. We've lost Mom. I've lost Jessica. And now I'm going to lose you too?"

"We better get out of here before the cops come."

Sam frowned at Dean.

Dean sighed.

"I hear you, okay? Yeah, I'm being an ass. I'm sorry. But right now we've got a friggin' zombie running around, and we need to figure out how to kill it."

Sam laughed.

"Right?"

Sam shrugged. "Our lives are weird, man."

"You're telling me?" Dean raised an eyebrow. "Come on."

~Supernatural~

"You're upset."

It wasn't a question.

I paced the floor in front of Castiel.

"I just….." I shrugged helplessly.

"It hit a nerve, I guess."

Castiel tilted his head to one side.

"Why?"

I choked on my own words.

"I don't…. I don't like it when people die for no reason."

Before Castiel could say more, Dean and Sam burst into my room.

"Okay," Dean nodded at me.

"Neil definitely brought her back. Now we have to try and find a way to gank her."

"You think silver would work?" Sam dropped his duffle on the bed.

"To an extent," Castiel leant against the door.

"It would adversely affect the girl, but it would not kill her."

"Then what would?" Dean demanded.

"Nailing her into her coffin," Castiel replied.

We paused.

"Uh, thanks, I guess," Dean huffed.

~Supernatural~

We came in time to see Angela almost stab her roommate, Lindsey.

Dean fired the silver bullets and Angela convulsed.

He fired again, right in Angela's chest.

She screamed, bolting out the window.

Dean followed, and we ran to Lindsey.

"Gotcha," Sam helped her up. "I gotcha."

Dean jumped back in through the window.

"Damn, that dead chick can run!"

"So what now?"

Dean swung his head around to me.

"I say we go have a little chat with Neil."

…

Neil was sitting in the dark nervously.

He sprang to his feet when we entered.

"What are you guys doing here?"

"You know," Dean shook his head.

"I've heard of people doing some pretty desperate things to get laid, but you- you take the cake."

"Okay." Neil eyed us suspiciously. "Who are you guys?"

Dean leant against wall casually.

"You might want to ask Angela that question."

Neil twitched uneasily.

"What?"

"We know what you did," Sam frowned. "The ritual? Everything."

He backed away from us.

"You're crazy."

Dean snorted.

"Your girlfriend's past her expiration date and we're crazy? When someone's gone they should stay gone. You don't mess with that kind of stuff."

"Angela killed Matt," Sam crossed his arms. "She tried to kill Lindsey."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Dean stomped over to the other side of the desk, hauling Neil up by his collar.

"Hey! No more crap, Neil. This blood is on your hands. Now we can make this right, but you've gotta tell us where she is. Tell us!"

He shook him for extra emphasis.

Neil paled.

"My house. She's at my house."

Dean let him go, then noticed several potted plants by the window.

They were dead.

He looked at Neil.

"You sure about that?"

Neil nodded apprehensively.

Dean looked past him to a closet.

He raised his voice slightly.

"Listen. It doesn't really matter where she is. There's only one way to stop her. We've got to perform another ritual over her grave, to reverse the one that you did. We're going to need some black root, some scar weed, candles…. it's very complicated, but it'll get the job done. She'll be dead again in a couple of hours. I think you should come with us."

He paused.

"I'm serious, Neil, leave with us. Right now."

"No." Neil moved further away. "No."

Dean leaned in, lowering his voice again.

"Listen to me. Get out of here as soon as you can. But most of all, be cool. No sudden movements. Don't make her mad."

He looked at us.

"Let's go."

~Supernatural~

We lit the candles around Angela's grave.

"You really think this is going to work?" Sam asked doubtfully.

"No, not really," Dean grunted.

"But it was the only thing I could come up with."

We heard a noise, and they nodded to me.

I stood and pulled my gun out, slowly moving in the direction of the sound.

Some distance away, I froze, whirling around to point the gun at Angela.

"Wait!" She pleaded. "It's not what you think. I didn't ask to be brought back. But it's still me. I'm still a person. Please."

I didn't want to do this.

_I'm sorry_.

I fired, hitting her square in the forehead.

Angela screamed, snapping her head back.

I sprinted back to the grave.

She tackled me, and I landed hard on the ground.

Angela twisted my head back.

Sam shot at her, startling her back to standing.

Dean fired at her several more times until she fell straight back into the open grave, landing into the empty coffin.

Sam pulled me up, and Dean grabbed a long metal stake, running to the grave.

He slid the last length on his knees, diving into the coffin.

Dean buried the stake in her chest, pinning her in.

Angela shrieked once, then went limp.

Dean pulled back, panting.

"What's dead should stay dead."


	9. Eloquence Is A Sin

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**OnceUponATimeFan- Thank you! I'm honored!**

**Garideth- Well, that's kinda why I added it, y'know? I mean, they can't protect her forever, and she is hunting with them, right? Yup, Rob Zombie is awesome!**

**XKaterinaNightingaleX- :) Thanks!**

CHAPTER NINE- ELOQUENCE IS A SIN

Dean drove the Impala down the road, mouth set in an uncertain line.

"I don't know, man, why don't we just chill out, think about this."

Sam shut off the radio.

"What's there to think about?"

"I just don't know," Dean shrugged. "Going to the Roadhouse isn't the smartest idea."

"Dean, it's another premonition," Sam sighed. "I know it. This is gonna happen, and Ash can tell us where."

"Yeah, man, but…."

Dean trailed off.

I turned to the silent angel sitting in the backseat.

"What do you think, Castiel?"

He seemed to snap out of his reverie, pinning me with his stare.

"I think you should go. Samuel's visions are always connected with the demon."

"That's my point," Dean slowed the car slightly.

"There's gonna be hunters there, I don't know if, if, if going in and announcing that you're some supernatural freak with a, a demonic connection is the best thing, okay?"

Sam huffed. "So I'm a freak now?"

Dean slapped Sam on the thigh playfully.

"You've always been a freak."

~Supernatural~

"Why aren't you with them?"

I could feel Castiel's gaze bore a hole into my back.

I raised my shoulders and let them drop.

"I'm not cut out for this life, Castiel, I'm just a liability. I know Dean thinks so, and I don't want to intrude when I'm not welcome."

I leant against the Impala.

Castiel joined me.

"I think Sam might disagree," He gestured to his gangly frame as Sam walked over.

"Where were you?" Sam frowned at me.

"Jo and Ellen were asking for you. You haven't been skulking out here, have you?"

"I just-" I stopped speaking as Dean approached.

Perceptive as ever, Sam scowled at Dean.

"Don't mind him, he can be a douche sometimes," He patted my cheek before getting in the car.

Castiel tilted his head at me, almost as if to say _I told you so_.

I smiled slightly.

"Okay," Dean slid in the car.

"We got a match with Andrew Gallagher. Guthrie, Oklahoma."

~Supernatural~

Dean followed up the strains of 'Can't Fight This Feeling' in the car, and Castiel regarded him with a faint air of distaste.

Sam stared at him in disbelief.

"You're kidding, right?"

"I heard the song somewhere, okay? I can't get it out of my head."

He turned around to glare at me as he heard my stifled chuckle, shaking his finger threateningly.

"Not a word, Bambi."

I froze.

"Bambi?" I stammered.

Dean snickered.

"Can't help it if you've got eyes like Disney's little trooper, kid."

"But-"

"Not hearing it," Dean waved a hand.

Sam's amusement was thinly veiled.

"But you can't call me Bambi!"

I was aware that I sounded like a pouting three year old.

At that point, I didn't really care.

Dean laughed harder.

Castiel looked at us intently.

"What is a… bambi?"

Dean's sniggers intensified.

"Bambi is a fuzzy, cute, small little deer on TV, Feathers. Remind you of anyone?"

Castiel fixed his eyes on me.

"I see."

I lapsed into indignant silence.

Bambi it remained.

~Supernatural~

The waitress poured coffee into our cups.

Castiel stared at his as if it were alive.

I gently pushed it away from him.

"You won't get anything out of Andy, guys," The waitress named Tracy smiled apologetically.

"I'm sorry, but they never do."

Sam raised an eyebrow. "'They?'"

"You're debt collectors, right?" Tracy tapped her foot.

"Once in a while they come by. I don't know what Andy says to them, but they never come back."

"Actually," Dean smiled charmingly. "We're lawyers. Representing his great aunt Leta. She passed, and left Andy a sizable estate."

"Yeah," Sam nodded. "So are you a friend of his?"

"I used to be," Tracy smiled sadly. "I don't see much of Andy anymore."

"Andy?" The boy nearby overheard us. "Andy kicks ass, man."

"Is that right?" Dean tipped his chair back.

"Yeah," The boy grinned. "Andy can get you into anything. He even got me backstage at Aerosmith once, it was beautiful, bro."

Tracy sighed. "How about bussing a table or two, Weber?"

"Yeah," Weber nodded good-naturedly. "You bet, boss."

Tracy turned to us.

"Look, if you want to find him, try Orchard Street. Just look for a van with a barbarian queen painted on the side."

Dean's eyebrows shot up.

"Barbarian queen?"

"She's riding a polar bear. It's kind of hard to miss."

…

We watched the van surreptitiously.

"I'm sorry," Dean shook his head. "I'm starting to like this dude. That van is sweet."

He looked at Sam.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Sam averted his gaze.

"Sam, you look like you're sucking on a lemon, what's going on?"

"This Andrew Gallagher," Sam pushed away the hair from his face.

"He's the second guy like this we've found, Dean. Demon came to them when they were kids, now they're killing people."

"We don't know what Andrew Gallagher is, all right?" Dean leant against the bonnet of his car.

"He could be innocent."

Sam stared down at the ground.

"My visions haven't been wrong yet."

"What's your point?" Dean crossed his arms.

"My point is, I'm one of them."

"No you're not," Dean glared at him.

"Dean, the demon said he had plans for me, and children like me."

"Yeah?" He cocked an eyebrow.

"Yeah, maybe this is his plan, maybe we're all a bunch of psychic freaks, maybe we're all supposed to be-"

"What, killers?"

"Yeah."

"So the demon wants you out there killing with your minds, is that it?" Dean huffed.

"Come on, give me a break. You're not a murderer, Sam! You don't have it in your bones!"

I jumped as he pointed at me.

"The demon said a hell of a lot about Bambi over there, too. You think she'd ever murder anybody?"

Sam blinked at me.

Andy exited a building, and Sam tensed.

"Got him."

A woman in a second-storey window waved to Andy, who blew her a kiss.

He greeted a man on the street, who handed him a coffee.

"That's him." Sam's eyes narrowed. "That older guy, that's him, that's the shooter."

"All right," Dean pushed me forward. "You two keep on him, I'll stick with Andy. Go."

…

We watched Dr. Jennings from a distance.

His cell phone rang, just like in Sam's vision.

"Hello. Yeah."

We saw the Blue Ridge bus approach, and ran for the sporting goods store.

Sam turned and pulled the fire alarm.

Dr. Jennings walked to the store, and stopped, confused, as he heard the alarm.

We left the store and went down the street.

I froze as I saw Andy driving the Impala.

Sam pulled out his phone, and out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Dr. Jennings do the same.

"Dean! Andy's got the Impala!"

"I know!" Dean answered.

"He just sorta asked me for it and I, I let him take it."

"You what?"

"He full-on Obi-Wanned me. It's mind control, man!"

We watched in horror as Dr. Jennings walked in front of a bus.

It slammed into him at full speed.

~Supernatural~

Dean and Sam were going after Andy.

I'd decided to stay behind; I still didn't feel comfortable around Dean.

It was obvious he didn't like me, and what good was I, anyway?

Sam had given me a worried look before he left, but what could I say to him?

I nearly didn't see Castiel until I was almost on the bed.

"Hey, Castiel."

"Hello, Odette."

I might have said more, but white-hot pain spiked through my head, and I collapsed on the bed.

_A woman holds a phone._

_A flash of fire, a man shies away from it_.

"Odette?"

Castiel put his cool fingers against my forehead, and I relaxed slightly at the contact.

I tried to tell him, but no words would come out of my mouth.

_She leans into her car, and presses down the cigarette lighter. _

_She pulls out the gas pump, and drenches herself in gasoline_.

It turned out I didn't have to say anything.

Castiel's voice was composed and modulated.

It helped me some.

"Odette. Listen to me. Stay calm. It's going to be over in a few minutes."

I couldn't help my scream as the pain intensified.

The pressure on my forehead increased.

The door banged open.

Sam was at my side in an instant, hand against my back.

"What's going on?" Dean demanded.

Castiel was unruffled.

"She's having a vision."

_The woman pulls the cigarette lighter and steps out into the open._

_She holds her arms out._

"_It's gonna be okay," She says._

_The lighter descends to her drenched arm._

_The woman bursts into flames_.


	10. Silver Tongue

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**AngelicScream- Haha, yeah, I thought it would be nice! Aw, thank you, I'm honored!**

**Garideth- Yup, he has to be, right? Yeah, Odette's a total Bambi!**

**ccgnme- I think he needs a punch!**

**XKaterinaNightingale- Thank you! Yup, I thought it would fit!**

CHAPTER TEN- SILVER TONGUE

"Hey, it's me," I pressed the phone to my ear as Dean spoke.

"She's dead. Burned up, like you said."

My heart sank.

"When?"

"Like minutes before I got here, I mean the smell hasn't even cleared," Dean huffed.

"What's up with your visions, kid? This wasn't even a headstart."

"I don't know," I massaged my head. "I can't control them, I don't know what the hell is going on."

"Listen," Dean's voice was a fraction gentler.

"Sam was with Andy when this whole thing went down, so it can't be him. It's someone else."

I frowned.

"That doesn't make any sense."

"What else is new?" I could almost picture Dean's smirk.

"Well, I'll dig around here, see what else I can find."

~Supernatural~

We sat across from each other on an abandoned truck.

Andy stared at us.

"So both of you get these premonitions of people about to die?"

We nodded.

"That's impossible."

Sam laughed.

"A lot of people would say the same thing about what you do."

"But….." Andy eyed us sympathetically. "Death visions."

"Yeah," I attempted a smile.

"That sucks," Andy said eloquently. "I mean, like when I got my mind thing? It was like a gift, you know."

"But you still live in a van," Sam wrinkled his forehead.

"I don't get it," I added. "You could have anything you ever wanted."

Andy shrugged.

"I've got everything I need."

His eyes flashed down to my cell.

"Hey, nice phone. Let me have it."

I looked down at it, then back to him.

"No."

Sam chuckled at Andy's dumbfounded expression.

"No fair," He whined. "You're immune, too?"

"Guess so."

Sam smiled.

"Odette can move things with her mind, too."

Andy's eyes widened in excitement.

"Really? That is so cool! Like Jean Grey in the Marvel comics?"

I couldn't help but laugh at his enthusiasm.

"Very much like that."

Sam shifted slightly.

"So you're really not a killer, huh?"

Andy snickered.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you!"

"That's good," Sam's lip pulled up. "Means there's hope for us."

Dean pulled up in the Impala, and we jumped to our feet.

"Victim's name was Holly Beckett," Dean approached us. "Forty one, single."

"Who is she?" Sam asked Andy.

Andy frowned.

"I've never heard of her."

"Called Ash on the way over here," Dean supplied.

"He came up with a little something. Apparently, Holly Beckett gave birth when she was eighteen years old, back in 1983. Same day you were born, Andy."

I looked at the boy.

"Andy, were you adopted?"

"Well, yeah," He twitched uneasily.

"You were?" Dean's eyebrow rose.

"And you neglected to mention that?"

"Never really came up," Andy shrugged.

"I mean, I never knew my birth parents, and my adopted mom died when I was a baby- do you think this Holly woman could be my-"

"I don't know," Dean interrupted. "I tried to get a copy of the birth records, but they're hard copy only, sealed in the county office."

Andy snorted.

"Well, screw that."

~Supernatural~

Castiel looked coolly at Andy.

"Nice coat, man," Andy grinned.

He coughed as Castiel continued to stare.

Sam broke the awkward silence.

"I got it."

"Yeah?" Dean looked over at Sam.

"Yeah," Sam nodded. "Andy, it's true. Holly Beckett was your mother."

"Huh." He sank into a chair.

"Does anyone have a Vicodin?"

"Dr. Jennings was her doctor, too," I flipped through the records.

"I mean, he oversaw the adoption. You have a solid connection to both of them."

"Yeah, but I didn't kill them," Andy shook his head.

"He's not lying."

Castiel looked unsurprisingly out of place in the records office.

"Then who did?" Dean crossed his arms.

"I think I got a pretty good guess," Sam cleared his throat.

"Holly Beckett gave birth to twins."

…

Andy stared straight ahead, dazed.

"I have an evil twin."

"Hate to kick you while you're freaked, but take a look at that."

Dean shoved a paper under Andy's nose.

It was Weber.

…

"All right, Andy," Dean drove the Impala down the dark road.

"Tell me everything you know about this guy."

"Well, I mean, not much," Andy shifted.

"Weber shows up one day, eight months ago? Acting like he's my best friend in the world. Kinda weird, like trying too hard, you know?"

Sam cringed, rubbing his eyes.

"Must've known you guys were twins," Dean rubbed a hand over his face.

"Why did he change his name? Why not just tell you the truth?"

"No idea."

"Aah!"

Sam moaned in pain.

"Sam?"

He yelled in panic, struggling with the door.

"Sam!"

Dean stopped the car as Sam shoved the door open, leaning out.

I ran out with Dean to kneel beside him.

Dean grabbed his shoulders.

"Hey. Hey!"

~Supernatural~

The window behind Weber's head shattered as he controlled Tracy.

Sam shoved a handgun in his face.

"Get out of the car! Now!"

"You really don't want to do this."

Sam backhanded him hard.

I helped Andy pull Tracy out of the car.

"Tracy," Andy held onto her. "Come here, come here. It's okay."

She shuddered.

"I can't control myself."

Sam opened Weber's door and pulled him out, pinning him facedown over the pavement with the gun aimed at his head.

"Don't move. Don't move!"

Andy ran over and shoved a strip of duct tape over Weber's mouth.

He reared back furiously, kicking Weber twice.

I pushed him back.

"No! No, Andy, let me handle this, all right?" Sam blocked his way.

"I'm gonna kill you!" Andy struggled out of my grip.

"No!" Sam yelled. "I'll handle this, I'll handle this!"

"I will kill you!"

I tugged him away.

"Andy, listen to me. Listen to me!"

Weber stared at Tracy, and she picked up a large stick, hitting Sam on the back of the neck with it.

She sent me crashing against the cement.

My head spun.

I dimly heard Andy shout.

"Tracy, stop! I said STOP IT!"

She dropped the stick and backed away, terrified.

Andy turned to Weber, who pulled the tape off his mouth.

"How did you do that?"

"Practice, bro," Weber grinned.

"If you'd just practice, you would know. Sometimes you don't need to use your words."

"If you have to," Weber tapped his forehead. "All you need is this. Sometimes the headache's worth it."

Andy grabbed Weber.

"You're a twisted son of a bitch!"

"Back off, Andy," Weber snarled. "Or Tracy's gonna do a little flying."

Andy turned in dismay to see Tracy standing on the ledge.

"Aren't you, Trace?"

Weber turned to Andy.

"I'm stronger than you. I can do it."

"Okay, okay," Andy backed away. "All right, just… just please don't hurt her."

"Don't be mad at me, okay?" He moved back.

"I know, it's, it's all wrong, I didn't mean for this to happen, it's just…. Tracy? She's trying to come between us."

Andy shook his head in disgust.

"You're insane."

"She's garbage, man!" Weber yelled. "Man, they all are! We can, we can push them, we can make them do whatever we want."

Andy inched towards the ledge.

"Are you really…. are you really this stupid?"

"Wha-"

Sam groaned, coming to.

"I mean, you, you learn you've got a twin, you call him up, you go out for a drink, you don't start killing people!"

"I've wanted to tell you for so long, bro. But he didn't let me. He said I had to wait."

"Who?"

Weber smiled.

"The man with the yellow eyes."

~Supernatural~

Within shooting distance, Dean stalked his hiding place with a sniper rifle, and I attempted to stand.

No luck.

"Why did you kill our mother? Why, and why Dr. Jennings?"

Sam hauled me up.

"Because they split us up!" Weber shouted.

"They ruined our lives, Andy! We could have been together this whole time, instead of alone. I couldn't let them do that, I couldn't let them get away with that."

Dean crouched in the shadows, lining up the shot.

Weber turned as a stick snapped.

"I see you. Bye- bye."

Dean turned the rifle, tucking the barrel under his chin.

"No!"

My scream echoed Sam's.

"You're not doing anything."

Castiel appeared, mouth set in a grim line, and snapped Weber's neck.

He thudded to the pavement.

Weber was dead.


	11. Hair Of The Dog

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**I'm skipping No Exit and The Usual Suspects, they're not really important to the storyline.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Garideth- Yeah, I hate him too! But Ava? Don't even get me started on her….**

**ccgnme- Cas is mega-awesome!**

**blue daisies- Aw, thank you! Actually, Odette's secret will be revealed in 2.17. Heart, that is! Yeah, I just picked them up along the way, I love learning new stuff!**

**XKaterinaNightingaleX- :) Thanks!**

**Chapter name borrowed from Nazareth.**

CHAPTER ELEVEN- HAIR OF THE DOG

We sat at the diner unobtrusively, trying to remain inconspicuous.

The waitress took our order, flirting with Castiel.

I felt a flash of irritation.

"So much for our low profile," Sam grunted, closing his laptop.

"You've got a warrant in St. Louis, and now you're officially in the Fed's database."

Dean grinned.

"Dude, I'm like Dillinger or something."

Sam glared at him.

"Dean, it's not funny. Makes the job harder, we've gotta be more careful now."

"Well," Dean kicked back in his chair. "What do they got on you?"

"I'm sure they just haven't posted it yet," Sam muttered.

Dean's eyes widened mischievously.

"No accessory? Nothing?"

"Shut up."

Dean lunged for the laptop, reading with barely concealed glee.

"Hey, even the kid's got a count! You're the only one who hasn't!"

Sam growled.

Dean smirked.

"You're jealous!"

Sam snatched the laptop back.

"No, I'm not!"

Castiel looked at us perplexedly.

"I don't understand. How is it a matter of pride for you to be known as a notorious criminal?"

Dean thought about it for a minute.

"It just is, okay?"

"All right," Dean looked at Sam. "What do you got on the case there, you innocent, harmless young man, you?"

Sam shut his computer again, annoyed.

I handed him the research.

"Architect Sean Boyden plummeted to his death from the roof of his home, a condominium he designed."

"Hmm," Dean snorted. "Build a high-rise and jump off the top of it. Classy. When did he call animal control?"

"Two days earlier," I supplied.

"Did he actually say Black Dog?"

"Yeah," Sam nodded.

"A vicious, wild, black dog. The authorities couldn't find it, no one else saw it; in fact, the authorities are a little confused as to how a wild dog could get past the doorman, take the elevator up, and start roaming the halls of the cushiest joint in town. After that, no more calls, he doesn't show up for work, two days later he takes a swan dive."

Dean raised an eyebrow.

"Do you think we're dealing with an actual Black Dog?"

"Maybe," Sam shrugged.

"What's the lore on it?"

"It's all pretty vague," I passed Dean the pages.

"I mean, there are spectral black dogs all over the world, but…. some say they're animal spirits, others say death omens. Whatever they are, they're big and nasty."

Dean glanced at me.

"All right, Bambi."

I sighed, this was humiliating, but….

I'd never admit it, but I was secretly pleased.

Even Sam had taken to calling me Bambi.

I figured it was only fair, since I'd been calling him Sammy.

"Yeah, I bet they could hump the crap outta your leg, look at that one, huh?"

Dean held up a picture and smirked.

It slipped slightly as Castiel shot him a disapproving look.

"What? They could."

~Supernatural~

The room was posh and well-lit, and I hung back with Castiel as Dean and Sam continued their questioning.

"So, you and Sean Boyden were business partners for almost ten years, right?"

"That's right," The man nodded. "Now one more time, this is for….?"

"A tribute to Mr. Boyden," Dean rubbed his head.

"Architectural Digest."

The man laughed.

"This funny to you?"

"No… it…. It's just, a tribute," He said bitterly.

"Yeah. See, Sean always got the tributes. He kills himself, leaves me and my family behind…. well, he gets another tribute."

"Right." Sam coughed awkwardly. "Any idea why he'd do such a thing?"

"I, I have no clue," The man shook his head.

"I mean, he lived a charmed life."

"How so?"

"He was a flat-out genius. I mean, I'm capable, but next to him, I…. and it wasn't always that way, either."

"No?" Dean crossed his arms.

"You wanna know the truth? There was a time when he couldn't design a pup tent. Hell, ten years ago, he's working as a bartender in a place called Lloyd's. A complete dive."

Castiel shifted, narrowing his eyes.

"Right." Sam leant against the kitchen counter. "So what changed?"

"You got me," The man chewed his lip. "But overnight, he gets this huge commission, and he starts designing…. he starts designing the most ingenious buildings anyone has ever seen, it was like the level of Van Gogh, and Mozart…"

He broke off abruptly.

"What?"

"It's funny. True geniuses, they seem to die young, don't they?"

~Supernatural~

We approached another white suburban door and knocked.

"I swear, if this is another freakin' Pomeranian barking in the neighbor's yard…"

Dean didn't need to finish.

The door opened and a young woman stared at us warily.

"Afternoon, ma'am," Dean pulled out his ID.

"Uh, Animal Control."

"Oh, someone already came yesterday," The woman smiled.

"Oh, we're just following up," Sam lied easily.

"We're looking for a Dr. Sylvia Pearlman?"

She let us in, glancing curiously at the silent angel.

"The doctor, well, she, I don't know exactly when she'll be back, she left two days ago."

"Okay. And you are…" Sam trailed off.

"I'm Ms. Pearlman's maid."

Dean waited expectantly.

"So where did the doctor go?"

"I'm not sure," She shrugged. "She just packed and went, she didn't say where. That stray dog, did you find it?"

"Oh, not yet," Sam shifted. "You know, you didn't happen to see the dog yourself, did you?"

"Well, no. I never even heard it."

Castiel surprised me by reaching up and taking a photograph off the wall.

"I was almost starting to think she was imagining things, but the doctor's not like that…."

"Hey," Dean added.

"You know, I read she was, uh, chief surgeon at the hospital. She's gotta be what, forty two, forty three? That's pretty young for the job."

"Youngest in the history of the place. She got the position….ten years ago?"

"Huh."

"Huh," Sam echoed Dean. "An overnight success. Ten years ago."

Castiel held up the photo, flipping it over so we could see the writing at the back.

Lloyd's Bar.

~Supernatural~

Castiel appeared in the car, making Dean curse violently.

"Feathers, how many times have I told you-"

Castiel ignored him.

He gestured outside at the bar.

"These people. They're making deals."

Castiel pointed at the crossroads.

"Look."

The yellow flowers planted by the side caught my attention.

He noticed my gaze.

"Those are yarrow flowers. Used for rituals. Summoning rituals."

Castiel disappeared out into the center of the crossroads, crouching to the ground.

We followed him hesitantly.

He dug into the hard soil, hitting something solid.

He stopped, pulling out an old rusted box.

Castiel opened it, showing several small bones and a stoppered jar.

"Graveyard dirt. And a black cat bone. This is hoodoo. It's used to summon a demon."

Sam huffed, stepping back from Castiel.

"They're seeing dogs, all right. But not black dogs. Hellhounds."

~Supernatural~

Sam and Dean had gone to look for more people who'd been regulars at the bar.

Dean had given me a calculating look before he'd left, almost as if he knew what I was planning.

Of course, hiding what I was trying to do from an angel was utterly futile.

Castiel stopped me before I'd even crossed the door.

"You're not going anywhere."

He picked me up unceremoniously by the scruff of my neck as I would a truant kitten, dumping me on the bed.

He leant against the door.

"Why do you want to make a deal?"

I couldn't control the tears any longer.

"I'm falling apart without them, Castiel. I'm nothing. I don't belong. Not here, not in Maine, not anywhere. Dean can't stand me. What else can I do but this?"

Castiel surprised me by sitting down on the bed.

"You're wrong. You have people who care. You have Sam."

I laughed bitterly.

Castiel fixed me with his unrelenting gaze.

"And I won't let you do this."


	12. Dancing At The Crossroads

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**AngelicScream- Thank you! Yup, Cas would totally do that!**

**Garideth- Yeah, the bloopers are hilarious! **

**ccgnme- Haha yeah, I thought it would be a really Cas-esque thing to do.**

**XKaterinaNightingaleX- Thank you!**

**Chapter name borrowed from Wexford Hurling.**

CHAPTER TWELVE- DANCING AT THE CROSSROADS

We approached the front door.

Sam knocked sharply.

A moment later, a squat man opened the door.

"Yes?"

"Evan Hudson?"

Dean stepped closer.

"You ever been to a bar called Lloyd's? Would have been about ten years ago."

Terrified, Evan slammed the door and latched it.

"Come on!" Dean sighed. "We're not demons!"

Sam glowered at him.

"Any other bright ideas?"

Dean paused.

"Hey, angel, poof us in there, would ya?"

Castiel seemed almost bored.

"As you wish."

He touched our foreheads.

We landed in front of the back room.

Dean prepared to knock down the door.

Sam caught his leg, stopping him.

"What-"

Looking at Dean pointedly, Sam turned the handle and pushed the door open gently.

The room was quiet.

"Evan?"

He jumped out from behind a bookshelf.

"Please! Don't hurt me!"

Sam held out his hand in a pacifying gesture.

"We're not going to hurt you, all right? We're here to help you."

Dean grimaced.

"We know all about the genius deal you made."

"What?" Evan backed up. "How?"

"Doesn't matter," Sam looked at him. "All that matters is, we're trying to stop it."

He eyed us suspiciously.

"How do I know you're not lying?"

"Well, you don't," Dean glared at him.

"But you're kinda running low on options there, buddy-boy."

Evan swallowed, pacing the floor.

"Can you stop it?"

"Don't know. We'll try."

Dean shot a look at Castiel.

"Any chance you can get him out of this?"

"No," Castiel's face was expressionless.

"I cannot interfere with deals. Only the demon involved can withdraw it."

"Great."

"I don't want to die," Evan gulped.

"Of course you don't," Dean banged his hand down on a table. "Not now."

"Dean. Stop." Sam said quietly.

He ignored him.

"What'd you ask for, anyway, Evan? Huh? Never need Viagra? Bowl a perfect game? What?"

"My wife," Evan looked down.

"Right," Dean snorted.

"Gettin' the girl. Well, that's worth a trip to hell for."

"Dean, please." I pulled him away. "Stop."

"No, he's right," Evan looked weary.

"I made the deal. Nobody twisted my arm…. that woman, whatever she was, at the bar? She said I could have anything I wanted. At first I thought she was nuts, but I was desperate."

"Desperate?" Sam raised an eyebrow.

"Julie was dying."

I sucked in a breath.

I could sympathize with Evan Hudson.

Hadn't I wanted to do the same thing only a few hours back?

Castiel's gaze reminded me that I couldn't.

"You did it to save her?"

"She had cancer," Evan answered Dean.

"They stopped treatment, moved her into a hospice. They kept saying….. a matter of days. So yeah, I made the deal. And I'd do it again in a heartbeat."

A muscle jumped in Dean's jaw.

"Did you ever think about her in all this?"

"I did this for her."

Dean advanced on him.

"You sure about that? I think you did it for yourself. So you wouldn't have to live without her. But guess what? She's going to have to live without you now."

Sam put a hand on Dean's chest, pulling him back.

"Okay, that's enough. You just sit tight, all right? We're going to figure this out."

…

Sam followed Dean into the hallway.

"You all right?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" Dean tossed Sam the bag of goofer dust.

"Hey, I got an idea. You throw George's hoodoo at the hellhound, keep it away from Evan as long as you can. I'm gonna summon the demon."

"Summon-" Sam spluttered. "Are you nuts?"

"Maybe a little. But I can trap it. I can exorcise it, and I can buy us time to figure out something more permanent."

"That would not be wise," Castiel followed us out. "It is too risky."

Dean turned back to look at him.

"You got a better idea?"

"Dean, you can forget it, all right?" Sam crossed his arms.

"I'm not letting you summon that demon."

"Why not?" Dean demanded.

"Because I don't like where your head is at right now, that's why not!" Sam snapped.

"What are you talking about?"

"You know, you've been on edge ever since we found that crossroads, Dean, and I think I know why."

"We don't have time for this," Dean brushed past us.

Sam stopped him with a single word.

"Dad. You think maybe Dad made on of those deals, huh? Hell, I've been thinking it. I'm sure you've been thinking it too."

"It fits, doesn't it?" Dean spoke quietly.

"I'm alive, Dad's dead. The yellow-eyed demon was involved. What if he did? What if he struck a deal? My life for his soul."

"I think I hear it!" Evan yelled. "It's outside!"

"Just keep him alive, okay?"

"Dean…"

But Dean was gone.

~Supernatural~

Sam sprinkled the dust in a line outside the window, shoving Evan inside the circle he'd made.

He paused, staring at me.

"So."

I rocked back on my heels.

"So?"

"You've been….."

Sam cleared his throat.

"You've been out of sorts for a while now, Odette."

I smiled without any humor.

"You've got bigger things to worry about, Sam."

He huffed.

"That's not an answer."

…

Evan hugged himself, standing in the middle of the circle.

Castiel stood by the window impassively.

Sam shook the bag of dust.

It came out empty.

"That's the last of it."

Evan whirled around.

"You hear that?"

"No, where?"

We heard the hellhounds howl.

Sam pulled me in the circle, stepping in himself.

The doors began to rattle violently.

The rattling became louder, more violent, then stopped suddenly.

"Do you still hear it?"

"No," Evan looked around hopefully. "Is it over?"

A rumbling sound came from the wall.

We spun around to stare at it.

It burst outward.

…

Castiel pushed me behind him as the barking grew louder.

I clung to Sam tightly.

Deep claw marks gouged into the floor in a path towards the circle.

They stopped just before the edge.

We backed away slowly as the wind ate away at the circle.

"Circle's broken. Come on!"

Sam pulled Evan out of the room, and Castiel grabbed my arm, tugging me along.

We burst into the storage room, and Castiel braced himself against the door, stopping the hounds temporarily.

My head spun, and I found myself inching towards Castiel.

The violent pounding stopped.

Everything went quiet.

We looked around, panting.

Dean had done his job.

~Supernatural~

Dean drove down the dark road.

Sam broke the tense silence.

"Demons lie all the time, right? Maybe she was lying."

"Come on," Dean snorted. "That really what you think?"

Sam bowed his head.

"How could he do it?" Dean whispered.

"He did it for you," Sam's voice was thick.

"Exactly. How am I supposed to live with that? You know the thought of him…. wherever he is right now. I mean, he spent his whole life hunting that yellow-eyed son of a bitch. He should have gone out fighting. That was supposed to be his legacy, you know? Not bargaining with the damn thing. Not this."

I ached to help Dean, to help them both, but there was nothing I could do.

Sam rested an arm on the windowsill.

"How many people do you think Dad saved? Total?"

Dean sighed. "That's not the point, Sam."

"Evan Hudson is safe because of what Dad taught us. That's his legacy, Dean. But we're still here, man. So we gotta keep going, for him."

He waited a beat.

"Dean."

He pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Yeah."

Sam coughed nervously.

"When you were trapping that demon, you weren't….. I mean, it was all a trick, right? You never considered actually making that deal, right?"

Dean did not answer.

~Supernatural~

I hugged the photo album to my chest, choking back the tears.

I couldn't stand to see their faces.

Couldn't stand to see _his_ face.

I didn't have the courage.

Sam's words ran through my head.

"_He left a hole, and it hurts so bad you can't take it."_


	13. Viruses Are Comin' To Town

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**SummerParamour- Yeah, I know, I have the same problem! Thank you! Haha, no, I'm Indian. Which terms are you talking of?**

**Garideth- Yup, they should all have a group hug!**

**ccgnme- Thank you! Haha, no, it doesn't seem that way at all!**

**blue-daisies- I can' tell you that, its for you to judge! :P**

**Erm, I found the name on a site somewhere, don't ask me how.**

CHAPTER THIRTEEN- VIRUSES ARE COMIN' TO TOWN

I tried not to scream as the vision flashed through my head.

_Dean steps into the room, gun in hand._

_A young blond boy writhes in a chair._

_He begins to babble._

"_No, no, no, you're not gonna…. no, I swear! It's not in me!"_

_Dean advances, cocking the gun._

"_I got no choice."_

_He fires_.

I gasped, jerking against the cold hotel floor.

The door opened and Dean entered, chewing on jerky and carrying a six-pack of beer.

I sat up, panting.

"Odette?"

~Supernatural~

Dean drove down the blacktop, and Sam navigated with his GPS device.

"Continue on O-R two-two-four west."

"There are only two towns in the U.S named Rivergrove," I said quietly.

"How come you're so sure it's the one in Oregon, Bambi?"

My eyes unfocused as I flashed back to the vision.

"There was a picture," I answered Dean. "Crater Lake."

"Okay, what else?" Sam glanced at me worriedly.

"I saw a dark room, some people, this guy tied to a chair."

I found myself wishing Castiel were here.

He had an uncanny way of calming me down.

"And I ventilated him?" Dean raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah," I nodded shakily. "You thought there was something inside him."

"What, a demon?" Dean slowed the car. "Was he possessed?"

"I don't know." I massaged my head.

"Was there any black smoke? Did we try to exorcise it?"

"No." I sighed. "You just killed him, that's it."

Dean huffed.

"I'm sure I had a good reason."

"I sure hope so," I whispered.

"What does that mean?" Dean snapped.

"I wouldn't kill an innocent man!"

"I never said you would, Dean," I muttered.

"Okay, enough," Sam looked between us.

"Look, we don't know what it is, but whatever it is, that guy in the chair's part of it. So let's find him, and see what's what."

…

We pulled into town past a large billboard advertising Crater Lake.

We stopped in front of a wooden shop.

The man from my vision was cleaning a rifle, dressed in a short-sleeved blue shirt and a brown vest.

"Morning," Dean said politely.

"Good morning. Can I help you?"

"Yeah," Dean pulled out a badge.

"Uh, Billy Gibbons, Frank Beard. U.S Marshals."

He narrowed his eyes.

"What's this about?

"We're looking for someone."

"A young man," Sam said. "Early twenties."

"He'd have a thin scar right below his hairline," I added.

"What'd he do?"

"Well, nothing," Sam shifted slightly.

"We're actually looking for someone else, but we think he could help."

"Yeah," Dean coughed. "He's not in any kind of trouble, not yet, anyway."

He glanced down at the tattoo on the man's arm.

"I think maybe you know who he is, Master Sergeant."

Dean smiled.

"My dad was in the corps, he was a Corporal."

"What company?"

"Echo-2-1."

"So can you help us?" Sam asked impatiently.

He hesitated.

"Dwayne Tanner's got a scar like that. But I know him. Good kid, keeps his nose clean."

"Oh, I'm sure he does." Dean rocked back on his heels.

"You know where he lives?"

"With his family, up Aspen Way."

"Thank you."

We left, and the man frowned after us.

Across the street, Sam bumped into a telephone wire and stopped to stare at it.

Gouged into it was a single word.

'CROATOAN.'

~Supernatural~

"I want you to stay here, okay?" Sam squeezed my shoulder for emphasis.

"There could be some sort of demonic virus, and we don't know what we're dealing with, so _stay_."

I attempted a smile.

"Sure, Sam."

Dean dragged Sam out the door to find Dwayne, giving me a last warning glance.

I sighed, huddling onto the bed.

I distinctly heard something rustle behind me.

"Hi, Castiel."

He surveyed me intently.

"You are troubled."

Some of the worry coiled in my stomach eased slightly.

"I don't know what's happening anymore, Castiel."

I buried my head in my hands.

"These visions, they scare me. It's like I'm in a nightmare, and I know I'm never going to wake up. I can't deal."

He sat next to me.

"You're going to have to, Odette. Have faith."

"Faith?"

I let out a half-laugh, half-sob.

"I've lost everything, Castiel. How do you expect me to have faith?"

He kept watch over me for the next few hours.

"I don't, Odette. But I hope, just the same."

~Supernatural~

I ran into the clinic, I'd come as soon as Sam had called me.

Dean nodded at me as I skidded in.

I glanced at the woman on the stool briefly.

"I don't know why," She seemed close to sobbing.

"One minute they were my husband and son, and the next, they had the devil in them."

"We gotta talk," Dean pulled us out into the hallway.

"Those guys were whacked out of their gourds."

"What do you think?" Sam paced back and forth. "Multiple demons, mass possession?"

"If it is a possession, there could be more." Dean was frustrated.

"I mean, God knows how many, it could be like a friggin' Shriner convention."

"Great."

"Of course, that's one way to wipe out a town, you take it from the inside."

"I don't know, man," Sam seemed uneasy. "We didn't see any of the demon smoke with Tanner, or any of the other usual signs."

"Well, whatever," Dean shrugged.

"Something turned him into a monster. And you know if you woulda taken out the other one there'd be one less to worry about."

"I'm sorry, all right?" Sam tugged a hand through his hair.

"I hesitated, Dean, it was a kid!"

"No," Dean set his jaw.

"It was an 'it'. Not the best time for a bleeding heart, Sam."

Dr. Lee stalked out of the lab, heels clicking loudly on the floor.

"How's the patient?"

"Terrible!" Dr. Lee glared at us. "What the hell happened out there?"

"We don't know."

"Yeah?" She scowled. "Well, you just killed my next door neighbor."

Dean rubbed his head.

"We had no choice."

"Maybe so, but we need the county sheriff. I need the coroner…"

"Phones are down," Sam informed her.

"I know, I tried. Tell me you have a police radio in the car?"

"Yeah we do, but it's busted out like everything else."

"How far is it to the next town?" Dean asked sharply.

"It's about forty miles down to Sidewinder."

"All right, I'm gonna go down there, see if I can find some help."

He clapped Sam on the shoulder.

"My partner'll stick around, keep you guys safe."

"Safe from what?" Dr. Lee demanded.

"We'll get back to you on that."

~Supernatural~

I leaned against the counter with Sam, staring at the body of what used to be Mr. Tanner.

"Huh."

"What?" Sam turned to Dr. Lee.

"His lymphocyte percentage is pretty high. His body was fighting off a viral infection."

"Really?" Sam looked up. "What kind of virus?"

She shrugged.

"Can't say for sure."

"Do you think an infection could have made him act like that?"

"None that I've heard of," She bit her lip.

"I mean, some can cause dementia, but not that kind of violence. And besides, I've never heard of one that did this to the blood."

"Did what?" Sam crossed his arms.

"There's this….. weird residue. If I didn't know better, I'd say it was sulfur."

…

Sam stared fixedly at Beverly, still huddled on the stool in the lab.

"I don't understand," Her voice trembled.

"Are you saying my husband and Jake had a disease?"

"That's what we're trying to find out," Dr. Lee said soothingly.

"Now, during the attack, do you remember….. did you have any direct contact with their blood?"

"Oh my God," Beverly was horrified. "You don't think I've got this virus, do you?"

"Beverly, I don't know what to think," Dr. Lee sighed. "But with your permission, we'll take a blood sample."

She nodded, laying her hand gently on the doctor's.

Suddenly, she grabbed her wrist, lashing out with her other hand.

Sam moved towards her, and she sent him careening into the cabinet.

Beverly picked up a scalpel, and Sam knocked her out with a fire extinguisher.

…

I followed Pam out into the hallway.

I couldn't stand to hear Dean and Sam's murmuring anymore.

Truthfully, Dean had terrified me when he'd shot Beverly Tanner in the heart.

I understood it was necessary, but the look on Dean's face was so foreign, so remote, so not _Dean_, that it scared me.

"How are you holding up, Pam?"

"Good. It'll all be over soon."

I did not see her lock the door.

"I've been waiting to get you alone anyway."

"What-"

She pushed me down to the floor, cutting my palm with a scalpel.

I knew what was coming now.

She slit her arm.

Pam's blood mixed with mine.


	14. The Virus Of Life

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**I'm skipping No Exit and The Usual Suspects, they're not really important to the storyline.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Garideth- Yup, I love Croatoan too! Yeah, they still do…. But they're learning!**

**XKaterinaNightingaleX- :) It's completely all right! **

**blue-daisies- Haha, yeah, I know! Yeah, I take extra care since this is unbetaed, and I'm a grammar Nazi, anyway!**

**ccgnme-Oh, there's a lot more in store for Odette, yet!**

**Chapter name borrowed from Slipknot.**

CHAPTER FOURTEEN- THE VIRUS OF LIFE

I hunched down on the stool, fighting back tears.

When it finally came down to it, I didn't want to die.

Not now.

Sam put an arm around me, but for once, it didn't work.

I was glad though, Dean hadn't shot Dwayne Tanner.

If I was going to die, at least I could be sure of that much.

"Doc, check her wound again, would you?"

Dr. Lee made no move.

"Doctor!" Dean barked.

"What's she need to examine her for?" The ex-Marine, Mark snapped.

I flinched, and Sam squeezed tighter, glaring at him.

"You saw what happened," Mark continued.

Dr. Lee looked at me, torn.

"Did her blood actually enter your wound?"

My eyes strayed to Pam's motionless body.

"Come on," Mark fumed. "Of course it did!"

"We don't know that for sure," Sam scowled at him.

"We can't take a chance," Dwayne did not meet my eyes.

"You know what we have to do."

Sam stood up, towering over Mark.

"Nobody shoots my sister."

The tears collected under my eyelids.

I'd finally gotten a chance to be happy, and now it had been snatched away again.

I just wished I could've seen Castiel one last time.

"She isn't gonna be your sister much longer," Dwayne growled.

Dean shoved him away roughly.

"You try anything, and I will shoot you myself."

I caught their hands.

"They're right." It cost me everything I had to say it.

"I'm infected. Give me the gun and I'll do it myself."

"Forget it," Dean snarled.

"We're not letting you do this," Sam's hand curled around mine.

"Please." My voice trembled. "I don't want to become a monster."

"Bambi, we've still got time."

Dean's ridiculous nickname only made me want to cry harder.

"Time for what?" Mark was furious.

"Look, I understand she's your sister, and I'm sorry, I am. But we gotta take care of this."

He pulled out his handgun.

Sam knocked it out of his hand.

Dean's voice was dangerously level.

"I'm gonna say this one time- you make a move on her, you'll be dead before you hit the ground."

"Then what are we supposed to do?" Mark bellowed.

Sam tossed him the keys to the car.

"Get the hell out of here, that's what," Dean glanced at him pointedly. "Take my car. You've got the explosives, there's an arsenal in there."

He looked at Dwayne and Dr. Lee.

You two go with him. You've got enough firepower to handle anything now."

"What about you guys?"

It sunk in only after a minute.

"No. Dean, Sam, no. Go with them. This is your only chance."

"You're not getting rid of us that easy," Sam sat next to me.

"No, she's right. Come with us."

Mark waited a beat.

"Okay, it's your funeral."

He led Dwayne and Dr. Lee out the door.

They left, and Dean shut the door behind them.

"You're not giving up, Bambi. We're not leaving."

I put my face in my hands.

I couldn't hold it in anymore.

"Wish we had a deck of cards," Dean coughed.

"Or a foosball table or something."

"Don't." I blinked through the tears.

"Don't do this, both of you. Get the hell out of here."

"No way," Sam's mouth tightened.

"Give me my gun, and _leave_," My voice broke.

"For the last time, Odette. No. We're not going to kill you. I'd rather shoot myself in the head first."

Dean's eyes were flat.

No compromises.

I slammed my hand down on the table, irrational anger crashing through me, because they were throwing away everything I used to have.

Everything I was going to die trying to have.

"No. Go."

I stood up, fiercely wiping my face.

"You can keep going. You have each other. That's all you need."

"You have to understand."

The tears coursed down my cheeks, and I choked back a sob.

"There was never much hope for me, anyway. I'm living a lie, Sam, Dean. I keep hoping things will get better, but I already know it won't. It's no use."

I couldn't stand to look at them.

"I wake up every morning, and there's nothing I have to live _for_. Not anymore. After everything…"

I trailed off.

"Trust me, you'd be doing me a kindness by letting me die."

"Crap."

Both my head and Dean's jerked up as Sam kicked his chair to the wall, ice crystallizing in his voice.

"What?"

"I said its crap. You're family, Odette."

Sam's eyes burned into mine.

"We don't abandon family. We go down with them, because that's what family does."

"Sam…."

I looked from face to face, and the tears started afresh.

I was losing two more brothers today.

_And Castiel_, my mind whispered.

"I'm sorry."

I snatched the gun from Dean, before they could react, putting it against my head.

_I'm sorry, Castiel. I wish I had your faith_.

"Stop."

There was so much authority in that single word, I couldn't help but obey.

Castiel pulled the gun from my hand, sending it clattering onto the floor.

Something close to anger flashed in his eyes.

"Death is your only solution, isn't it? You're a coward, Odette."

He pressed his fingers to my forehead, and the slit in my hand pulsed with pain.

I dimly heard Dean and Sam shout.

Everything went black.

~Supernatural~

I sat huddled on my bed, panting as I woke up from the same nightmare.

My lips trembled.

I wished Castiel hadn't saved me.

Almost as if he'd read my mind, Sam stepped into my room.

"Hey."

"Hey," I said quietly as he sat down on my bed.

"How did you know I was awake?"

He smiled wryly.

"I had a feeling."

"So."

I looked down.

"What you said back there…." Sam's tone was soft.

I looked up.

I knew what he was asking.

"It was the truth."

The ache in my chest returned full-force, and I couldn't take it any longer.

I crawled into Sam's lap, burying my face in his chest to hide my sobs.

He wound his arms around me.

"Sshh, Odette," He soothed. "It's gonna be okay."

I tried my hardest to believe him.

…

Dean and Castiel found us asleep like that in the morning.

Castiel looked my way sternly, and I flushed.

_I'm sorry, Castiel. I just don't know what to do anymore._

His face seemed to be a little less severe.

Dean grinned evilly.

"Well, if it isn't the mother hen and her brood."

Sam growled, and I turned beetroot red, hiding my smile.

Maybe, just maybe, there was hope.


	15. Killing In The Name

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Garideth- Thank you! She might…. Or she might not. :P **

**Phantom's Ange- Yeah, I liked writing it too! I did mention the line where she thought she was gonna lose two more brothers, remember? Odette knows. A little. :P**

**blue-daisies- Yeah, I'll have to think about that!**

**XKaterinaNightingaleX- Thanks! :D**

**ccgnme- Yeah, I figured he would be!**

**Chapter name borrowed from Rage Against The Machine.**

CHAPTER FIFTEEN- KILLING IN THE NAME

The Impala was parked under a tree, and the tension in the air was palpable.

"Before Dad died," Dean put down his beer. "He told me something—something about you."

Sam's head jerked up.

"What? Dean, what did he tell you?"

Dean took a swig of beer, almost as if for courage.

"He said that he wanted me to watch out for you, to take care of you."

"He told you that a million times," Sam snorted.

"No," Dean shook his head. "This time was different. He said that I had to save you."

Sam's tone sharpened.

"Save me from what?"

"He just said that I had to save you, that nothing else mattered; and that if I couldn't, I'd….." Dean trailed off.

"You'd what, Dean?"

I took a step back to Castiel.

Something was coming, and I had a feeling I didn't want to know what Dean was going to say.

He swallowed.

"That I'd have to kill you. He said that I might have to kill you, Sammy," Dean whispered.

Everything went still.

"Kill me?" Sam exploded. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

Dean lowered his head.

"I don't know."

My ears seemed to ring as Dean's words registered in my head.

Kill. Sammy.

No.

_No_.

Sam paced back and forth.

"I mean, he must have had some kind of reason for saying it, right? Did he know the demon's plans for me? Am I supposed to go darkside or something? What else did he say, Dean?"

"Nothing," Dean leant against the tree. "That's it, I swear."

"How could you not have told me this?" Sam yelled.

"Because it was Dad," Dean sighed. "And he begged me not to."

"Who cares?" Sam shouted.

"Take some responsibility for yourself, Dean! You had no right to keep this from me!"

"You think I wanted this?" Dean retorted.

"Huh? I wish to God he'd never opened his mouth. Then I wouldn't have to walk around with this screaming in my head all day."

Sam turned and took a few steps away, fuming.

I put a hand on his arm.

He was shaking.

Sam turned wide, pleading eyes to Castiel.

"Tell me…. tell me this isn't true."

Castiel remained at my side, expressionless as usual.

"I'm sorry, Samuel. John Winchester's warnings do not go unheeded."

"I've been thinking about this," Dean said abruptly.

"We should lay low. At least for a while. It'd be safer. And that way I can make sure-"

"What?" Sam cut him off.

"That I don't turn evil? That I don't turn into some kind of killer?"

"I never said that!" Dean exclaimed, frustrated.

"Jeez, Dean, if you're not careful you'll have to waste me one day," Sam said bitingly.

"I didn't say that!" Dean rubbed his head.

"Damn it, Sam, this whole thing is spinning out of control. All right? I don't even know what the hell anymore. And you're pissed at me, I get it. That's fine, I deserve it. But we lay low until we figure out our next move, okay?"

"Forget it," Sam snapped.

"Sam, please, man," Dean begged.

"Hey, please. Just give me some time to think, okay? I'm begging you here, please."

Sam nodded reluctantly.

~Supernatural~

"Where the hell is he?" Dean yelled, angrily punching the wall.

"I told him! I told him to lay low!"

I pulled him away from the flaking plaster.

"We'll find him, Dean, just calm down."

Dean growled wordlessly, pushing me away.

"Lafayette, Indiana."

Dean cursed violently as Castiel reappeared.

"What?"

"Lafayette, Indiana," Castiel repeated, as if talking to a slow-witted child.

"Samuel is searching for other children like him."

I ran up to Castiel.

"Take us to him."

…

I twitched restlessly in the car next to Castiel as Dean ran out to refuel.

Worry for Sam swamped me, and I itched to find a distraction.

"Hey, Castiel?"

He slowly raised his head.

"Tell me about heaven."

I wrung my hands nervously.

Castiel looked at me impassively.

"What do you wish to know?"

I stuttered.

"About…. about other angels. What's it like?"

Castiel tilted his head.

"There are thousands. My brothers and sisters, all bound to follow Father's will. There is no one heaven, Odette. Hundreds, to fit each person."

Castiel's eyes seemed far away.

"We each have our own garrison, and one leader among them."

There was a hint of pride in his voice.

"Mine was the strongest. We were the soldiers, the army. We were the ones who fought."

Castiel's eyes turned dark and fierce.

"To lose was never an option. We won, or we died trying."

I suppressed a shiver at the fierce pride in his eyes.

"And then," Castiel's face turned inscrutable again. "I was sent here."

I paused.

"Did you like it there, Castiel?"

Something like surprise flitted across Castiel's features.

"No one's ever asked me that before."

I waited.

For a second, he was almost unsure.

"I don't know, Odette."

…

We'd finally found Sam.

Dean's sigh of relief mingled with mine.

"Oh, thank god you're okay," Dean said softly.

Sam moved aside, revealing a girl leaning against the motel window.

Dean smirked.

"Oh, you're better than okay. Sam, you sly dog!"

I chuckled quietly.

It died in my throat as the window above Sam's head shattered.

I dimly heard the girl shriek inside.

Dean pulled me out, pointing at the rooftop across the street.

A long black silhouette pointed a sniper rifle at the motel.

"Come on!"

He dragged me out.

…

Dean tackled the man to the ground.

Gordon.

"Gordon!" Dean yelled, kicking him hard.

Dean pinned him down on his back, hitting him in the face.

"You do that to my brother, I'll kill you!"

"Dean, wait."

Gordon wrestled the rifle away from Dean, hitting us both in the head.

We fell to the ground, unconscious.

~Supernatural~

I came to, tied back to back with Dean in a chair.

I heard the tail end of his conversation with Sam, as Gordon held the phone to his ear.

I glared at him, struggling with my rope.

Dean winked at me, and I stared at him incredulously.

_Sam knows_, he mouthed, as Gordon put the phone away.

He turned back to us.

"Now, was that so hard?"

"Bite me," Dean snarled.

I kicked against the chair.

"Why are you doing this, Gordon?"

He jammed a knife into a wooden table.

"To kill your darling brother, of course."


	16. For The Right Reasons

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Garideth- Yup, he pisses me off, too! **

**Doggyfanfic- Haha, thank you! Odette's secret is out in 2.17, like I mentioned before!**

**ccgnme- Yes, I know, I hate him too!**

**XKateribaNightingaleX- Thank you! ;)**

**blue-daisies- I agree with you there! Regrettably, no.**

**Erm, I found the name on a site somewhere, don't ask me how.**

CHAPTER SIXTEEN- FOR THE RIGHT REASONS

Gordon leant against a pillar casually, cradling his rifle.

"See, I was doing an exorcism in Louisiana. Teenage girl, seemed routine, some low-level demon. But between all the jabbering and head-spinning, the damn thing muttered something. About a coming war. And I don't think it meant to, it just kind of slipped out. But it was too late. Peaked my interest. And you can really make a demon talk, you got the right tools."

Dean stared at him.

"And what happened to the girl it was possessing?"

"She didn't make it," Gordon said lightly.

My lip curled in disgust.

Dean shook his head, echoing my sentiments.

"Well, you're a son of a bitch."

Gordon stood, backhanding Dean across the face.

"That's my momma you're talking about."

He paused a beat.

"Anyway. This demon tells me there are soldiers to fight in this coming war. Humans, fighting on hell's side. You believe that? I mean, they're psychics, so they're not exactly pure humans, but still. What kind of worthless scumbag have you got to be to turn against your own race?"

Dean glared at Gordon.

"But you know the biggest kick in the ass?" He grinned. "This demon said I knew one of them. Our very own Sammy Winchester."

Dean chuckled.

"Oh, this is a whole new level of moronic, even for you."

"Uh-uh, I ain't finished yet."

Before I knew it, Gordon had a knife pressed against my throat.

"It also said they would take you, Odette Slessor, to convert. It did say you were too pure for their tastes, but," Gordon cut a line into my neck.

"The demon said you might be stronger."

The blood trickled down my throat.

Dean cursed, pulling at his bonds.

"You lay a hand on Bambi, you bastard, I swear to God I'll-"

"You'll what?"

Gordon withdrew.

"What, Dean? I know both of them see visions. I did my homework, made damn sure it was true."

He crossed to the corner and sat down.

"About a month ago, found another freak in town. He could deep-fry a person by touch alone."

"Yeah?" Dean spat. "Did he kill anyone?"

"Well," Gordon shrugged. "Besides Mr. Tinkles the cat? No. But he was working up to it. They're all going to be killers, Dean."

He pointed the knife at me.

"Your _Bambi _over there, I regret that, I do, but she'll kill someone one day too. I'm sorry, they both have to die."

He cocked the rifle, and I closed my eyes.

"You think Sam's stupid enough to walk through that front door?" Dean laughed incredulously.

"And Odette? She wouldn't hurt a fly."

"No, I don't," Gordon stood up.

"Especially since I'm sure you found a way to warn him. Ha. You really think I'm that stupid?"

Dean raised his eyebrows.

"No, Sammy's gonna scope the place, see me covering the front door, so he's going to take the back. And when he does, he'll hit the tripwire."

Gordon pulled out a grenade.

"Boom."

Dean snorted.

"Sam's not gonna fall for a friggin' tripwire."

"Maybe you're right," Gordon nodded.

"That's why I'll have a second one."

~Supernatural~

Gordon set up the tripwire across the back doorway, returning to our room and straddled a chair.

"Come on, man," Dean reasoned.

"I know Sam, he's got more of a conscience than I do, and so does Odette. I mean, she's friggin' scared of rats, for pete's sake! They'd never kill anybody!"

"I'm sorry, Dean, especially about the kid. But I can't help it. They'll turn into monsters one day."

"How, huh? How?" Dean yelled.

"Beats me," He shrugged. "But they will."

"No, you don't know that!"

"I'm surprised at you, Dean," Gordon clicked his tongue.

"Getting all emotional. I'd heard you were more of a professional than this."

"I'm sorry, I am," Gordon swiftly gagged us. "But I have to."

He raised the knife, and I screwed my eyes shut.

There were two clicks from the door.

We froze.

"You hear him?"

The door squeaked.

"Here he comes."

We flinched helplessly as the first grenade exploded.

"Hold on," Gordon cautioned. "Not yet. Just wait and see."

Dean struggled violently as the second grenade went off.

The tears rolled down my cheeks.

Sam was dead, and I was about to die.

"Sorry, Dean."

Gordon moved forward, backing away as the door blasted open.

We stared in disbelief at Sam and Castiel.

"How did you-" Gordon sputtered.

Sam raised his gun.

"Angelic interference."

Castiel gazed stonily at Gordon.

Sam's tone was low.

"Drop the gun."

Gordon did not move.

"Put it down now!" Sam shouted.

Gordon looked at him calmly.

"You wouldn't shoot me, would you, Sammy? Because your brother thinks you're some kind of saint."

"Yeah?" Sam cocked an eyebrow. "I wouldn't be so sure."

"See, that's what I said," Gordon nodded, charging Sam.

He didn't factor in Castiel.

Castiel swung Gordon around easily, pinning him against the wall.

"You should not have done that."

He pressed two fingers to Gordon's forehead.

He slumped to the ground, unconscious.

Castiel turned to me, untying the rope around my wrists, as Sam did the same to Dean.

"Thanks," I stood shakily, pulling off the gag.

I caught hold of Sam's arm to make sure he was really there.

He smiled at me, before glaring at Gordon's motionless body.

"It's Sam, you bastard."

~Supernatural~

I couldn't help but smile, remembering Gordon's capture by the police.

Dean drove down the road

Sam picked up his phone.

"Hey, Ava, it's Sam, again. Um, call me when you get this, just want to make sure you got home okay."

Dean glanced at him.

"Everything all right?"

"Yeah," Sam sighed. "I hope so."

"Well, Gordon should be reaching for the soap for the next few years at least."

"Yeah," Sam nodded.

"If they pin Scott Carey's murder on him. And if he doesn't bust out."

"Dude, you ever take of like that again…." Dean threatened.

"What?" Sam challenged. "You'll kill me?"

Dean glowered.

"That is so not funny."

Sam laughed.

"All right, all right. So where to next, then?"

"One word," Dean snickered. "Amsterdam!"

I hid my smile as Sam glared at him.

"Come on, man, I hear the coffeeshops don't even serve coffee!"

"I'm not just gonna ditch the job, Dean."

"Screw the job," Dean gunned the ignition.

"I'm sick of it anyway. I mean, we don't get paid, we don't get thanked. The only thing we get is bad luck."

"Well, come on, dude, you're a hunter," Sam reasoned. "It's what you were meant to do."

"I wasn't meant to do anything," Dean growled.

"I don't believe in that destiny crap."

"You mean you don't believe in my destiny," Sam said quietly.

"Yeah, whatever."

"Look, Dean," Sam rubbed his head.

"I've tried running before. I mean, I ran all the way to California and look what happened. You can't run from this. And you can't protect me."

"I can try."

"Thanks for that," Sam said softly.

Dean nodded.

"Look, Dean, I'm gonna keep hunting. I mean, whatever is coming, I'm taking it head-on; so if you really want to watch my back, I guess you'll have to stick around."

"Bitch."

"Jerk."

They both grinned, and I suppressed a chuckle.

After a short pause, Sam scooped up his phone again.

"You calling that Ava girl again?" Dean waggled his eyebrows.

"You sweet on her or something?"

Sam gave him a dirty look.

"She's engaged, Dean."

Dean smirked.

"So? What's the point in saving the world if you can't get a little nookie once in a while, huh?"

Sam hung up, scowling.

I snorted at Castiel's expression.

"What is a nookie?"

I grinned for the first time in months, patting his arm.

"Trust me, Castiel, you don't wanna know."

Dean looked at the still-scowling Sam.

"What?"

"Just a feeling," Sam frowned. "How far is it to Peoria?"

~Supernatural~

We broke into the Wilson's home, sweeping the room with flashlights.

"Hello?" I called.

"Is anybody home?"

We went into the bedroom.

Ava's fiancé was dead, face-up on the bed, shirt and sheets soaked in blood.

"Oh my God," I whispered, horrified.

Dean ran a finger along the windowsill.

"Sulfur."

Castiel stared at the room.

"A demon's been here. A powerful one."

I knelt to the ground numbly.

Ava's engagement ring had fallen in a pool of blood.


	17. Dolls Of Many Climes

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Chapter name borrowed from LYNX.**

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN- DOLLS OF MANY CLIMES

"Yeah. Okay. Thanks, Ellen," Sam hung up the phone and sighed.

I smiled at him sympathetically.

"What'd she have to say?" Dean entered the room, handing us our coffees.

I took mine gratefully.

"Oh, she's got nothing," Sam frowned.

"We've been checking every database I can think of- federal, state and local. No one's heard anything about Ava…. she just….. into thin air, you know?"

"Huh."

Sam looked over at him.

"What about you?"

"No, same as before," Dean shook his head. "Sorry, man."

"Um," I spoke up nervously, warily watching Dean's reaction.

"What?" He snapped.

"Castiel has a-"

I'd hardly said his name before he appeared himself.

"Case for you," Castiel finished.

"A hotel in Cornwall, Connecticut," He continued.

"Two freak accidents in the past three weeks."

"Yeah?" Dean raised an eyebrow. "Shouldn't we be focusing on Ava?"

Castiel curled his lip ever so slightly.

His inability to locate Ava Wilson perturbed him greatly.

I decided to interrupt.

"It's a job. I mean, a lady drowned in the bathtub; then a few days ago a guy falls down the stairs, head turns a complete one-eighty. Not exactly normal, right?"

Dean didn't seem convinced, but Sam decided for him.

"We'll take it."

~Supernatural~

I jerked awake as the opening riff of 'Back In Black' blasted from the Impala's speakers.

Sam shot Dean a dirty look, but he simply smirked.

Castiel's expression was somewhere between resignation and ambivalence, and I realized my head was on his shoulder again.

I shifted away at once, turning red.

The roads were wet, even though it wasn't raining, and the air was misty as we parked the Impala in front of the inn.

Dean seemed pleased.

"Dude, this is sweet. I never get to work jobs like this."

"Like what?" Sam asked.

"Old school haunted houses, you know?" Dean grinned.

"Fog, and secret passageways, sissy British accents. Might even run into Fred and Daphne while we're inside."

He closed his eyes briefly.

"Mmm. Daphne. Love her."

Castiel's face held something close to disgust as he glanced at Dean.

My lips twitched.

Sam snorted and muttered something that I didn't catch, but Dean definitely did.

His eyes flew open indignantly.

"Bite me, Sam. You're the one who has a crush on that Velma chick."

Sam's ears turned pink.

Evidently tired of their bantering, Castiel went up the steps, inspecting an urn on the side of the porch.

"It's not haunted."

"What do you mean?"

We followed him up the steps.

"See this pattern."

Castiel tapped a five-point symbol engraved in the urn.

"It's a quincunx, a five-spot."

"Five spot," Dean nodded.

"It's used for hoodoo spellwork," Castiel confirmed.

"Right, yeah," Dean forgot to sound rude at that point.

"Fill this thing with bloodweed and you've got a powerful charm to ward off enemies."

"Yeah, except I don't see any bloodweed," Sam objected.

"Don't you think this place is a little too, uh, whitemeat for hoodoo?"

"Maybe."

…

We looked at the quiet interior, and the inn's owner entered briskly.

"May I help you?"

"Hi, yeah," Dean smiled. "I'd like two rooms for a couple of nights."

As Sam moved in, a small girl darted in front of his legs.

"Hey!" The woman exclaimed, shooing the child away.

"Sorry about that."

"No problem."

"Well, congratulations," She smiled brightly. "You could be some of our final guests!"

"Well." Dean swallowed. "Sounds vaguely ominous."

"No, I'm sorry, I mean we're closing at the end of the month."

She seemed to appraise us carefully.

"Well, let me guess. You guys are here antiquing?"

Dean decided to go with it.

"How'd you know?"

"Oh," She waved a hand. "You just look the type."

Dean looked distinctly uncomfortable.

"So, uh," She waggled a hand at Sam and Dean.

"King-sized bed for you, and a single for your kid?"

The hall was filled with our spluttering.

"What?" Sam squawked. "No, uh, no, we're brothers, Odette's our sister."

"Oh."

She blinked rapidly.

"Oh, I'm so sorry."

There might have been something akin to amusement in Castiel's gulf-blue eyes as he watched us silently.

"What'd you mean that we look the type?" Dean crossed his arms.

"You know, speaking of antiques," Sam interrupted, "You have a really, really interesting urn on the front porch. Where did you get that?"

"Oh, I have no idea, it's been there forever," She handed Dean the keys.

"Here you go, Mr. Mahagov."

"Thanks."

The woman rang the bell.

"You'll be staying in room 237. Sherwin, could you show them to their rooms?"

We turned to see an old, balding man in a black blazer shuffling up behind us.

"Let me guess. Antiquers?"

Sherwin dragged Dean's clunking duffle bag up the stairs as we followed.

"I could give you a hand," Dean offered.

"I got it."

"Okay," Dean said dubiously.

"So the hotel's closing up, huh?" Sam waited expectantly.

"Yep," Sherwin nodded.

"Miss Susan tried to make a go of it, but the guests just don't come like they used to. Still, it's a damn shame."

"Oh, yeah?" Sam asked casually.

"It may not look it anymore, but this place was a palace," He sighed gustily.

"Two different vice presidents laid their heads in our pillows. My parents worked here, I practically grew up here. Gonna miss it. Here's your room."

Sherwin slipped the key in the lock and opened the door, handing it to Sam as he brushed past.

Dean turned to shut the door to find Sherwin standing there, hand extended expectantly,

"You're not gonna cheap on me, are you, boy?"

Dean looked annoyed as he pulled out his wallet.

…

We sat, sifting through papers while Dean paced impatiently.

Sam chuckled as Dean approached an antique wedding dress splayed out on the wall like a ghost.

"What the-"

"What?"

"That's normal," Dean rolled his eyes.

"Why the hell would anyone stay here? I'm amazed they kept in business this long."

"All right." Sam held up the research.

"Victim number one: Joan Edison, forty three years old, a realtor handling the sale of the hotel; and victim number two was Larry Williams, moving some stuff out to Goodwill."

"Well, there's a connection," Dean pointed out.

"They were both tied up in shutting the place down."

"Yeah," Sam chewed his lip.

"Maybe somebody here doesn't want to leave, and they're using hoodoo to fight back."

"Who do you think our witch doctor is?" Dean cocked an eyebrow.

"That Susan lady?"

"I don't think so," I said cautiously. "She's the one selling it."

"So what then, Sherwin?"

"I don't know," Sam answered Dean tetchily.

"Of course," Dean gritted his teeth.

"The most troubling question is why do these people assume we're gay?"'

"Well, you are kinda butch," Sam said thoughtfully.

"Probably think you're overcompensating."

I couldn't help my laughter, but I subsided quickly under Dean's glare.

~Supernatural~

I pouted indignantly, staring at the dingy hotel wall.

"You're not ready yet," Castiel appeared behind me with the sound of rustling feathers.

"I know."

It didn't help much.

He sat next to me.

"Do you want to be?"

I found myself tongue-tied under his intense scrutiny.

"Would you understand if I said yes and no at the same time?"

His eyes seemed slightly warmer.

"I would, Odette."

Castiel paused.

"I've been meaning to ask you something."

I looked up, surprised.

Castiel had never before volunteered something like that.

"What?"

"You. All of you. Why do you….. give each other monikers? Are your real names not good enough?"

I tried my best not to laugh, remembering that Castiel had no knowledge of human customs.

I considered his question seriously.

"I guess it's a sign of affection, Castiel. It means you're important to the person who gave you the name. That you belong. "

I hesitated.

"It shows you care."

…

"So, we got some info," Dean crashed on top of the bed.

"We got dolls, hoodoo and a mysterious shut-in grandma."

I looked from Sam to Dean.

"Well, dolls are used in all kinds of voodoo and hoodoo, like curses and binding spells," Sam offered.

"Yeah, maybe we found our witch doctor," Dean got off the bed.

"All right, I'll see what I can go dig up on Granny, you go get online, check old obits, freak accidents, that sort of thing."

"Right."

"Ask Angel Boy for help," Dean swung the door shut, leaving us blinking after him in shock.

~Supernatural~

"Sam! Enough!" I tugged at the bottle of beer in his hands. "Stop!"

"Don't wanna," Sam muttered sulkily, stubbornly hanging on.

"Sam." I pulled harder. "Drop it."

I applied greater force, and Sam grinned mischievously, shrugging.

"Okay."

He let go suddenly, and I went flying to the floor, landing in front of the door.

"There's been another-"

Dean looked down.

"What are you doing on the floor, kid?"

"Nothing," I scrambled to my feet, throwing Sam a dirty look.

He smirked.

"Anyway, some guy just hung himself in his room," Dean sat down heavily.

"We saw," Sam said darkly.

I sighed.

That was around the time he'd started drinking.

"We've gotta figure this out, and fast," Dean frowned.

"What'd you find out about Granny?"

"You're bossy," Sam pushed out his lip.

Dean looked around in surprise, and I suppressed a groan.

"What?"

"You're bossy." Sam repeated. "And short."

He laughed sloppily.

Dean's eyebrow climbed upwards.

"Are you drunk?"

"Yeah. So?" Sam shook his head. "Stupid."

Dean glanced at the empty bottles on the table.

He rounded on me.

I held up my hands.

"I tried to stop him. That's why I was on the floor. I had to wrestle the bottle away from him."

Dean's lips twitched.

"And how does a fourteen year old girl wrestle a bottle away from Gigantor?"

I looked away.

"I didn't," I mumbled. "He let go."

"And I'm fifteen now," I added.

Dean laughed, shaking his head at me. "Whatever, kid."

He turned his gaze on Sam.

"Dude, what are you thinking? We're working a case."

Sam's eyes were shiny.

Too shiny.

"That guy who hung himself. I couldn't save him."

"What are you talking about?" Dean demanded.

"You didn't know, you couldn't have done anything."

Sam shifted his eyes to Dean.

"That's an excuse, Dean. I should have found a way to save him. I should have saved Ava too."

Dean moved forward.

"Yeah, well, you can't save everyone, even you said that."

Sam slammed a hand down on the table.

"No, Dean, you don't understand, all right? The more people I save, the more I can change!"

I looked at Sam anxiously.

He was starting to worry me.

"Change what?" Dean was getting testy, now.

Sam leaned forward, eyes glinting.

"My destiny, Dean!"

"All right," Dean stood up. "Time for bed. Come on, Samsquatch."

Between us, we managed to haul him up by his shoulders, dropping him down on the bed.

Sam looked up at him.

"I need you to watch out for me."

Dean glanced at him, puzzled.

"Yeah, I always do, Sam."

"No!" Sam said wildly.

"No, no, no. You have to _watch out_ for me, all right? And if I ever turn into something that I'm not…."

He waited a beat.

"You have to kill me."

Dean was dismissive.

"Sam."

Sam shoved Dean to face him.

"Dean! Dad told you to do it, you have to."

"Yeah, well, Dad's an ass."

Sam frowned in confusion.

"He never should have said anything. I mean, you don't do that, you don't, you don't lay that kind of crap on your kids"

"No." Sam was quiet.

"He was right to say it. Who knows what I might become? Even now, everyone around me dies!"

"Yea, well, I'm not dying, okay?" Dean sighed.

"And neither are you. Come on, Sam."

He tried to push him back down, but Sam remained seated.

"No, please! Dean, Odette," I jerked as he looked at me.

"You're the only ones who can do it. Promise me."

I froze.

How could I agree?

"Please," Sam looked frantically from the both of us. "Promise me."

Dean hung his head.

"I promise."

Sam turned to me.

My lips trembled as I forced out the words.

"I promise, Sam."

"Thanks," Sam clutched my hand for a moment.

He reached up and grabbed Dean's face with both his hands.

"Thank you."

"All right," Dean batted his hands away. "Come on."

He pushed him down on the bed.

Sam fell back, turning over on his stomach to plant his face on the pillow.

I met Dean's gaze.

What had we just done?


	18. Creepy Doll

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Garideth- I know, right? He's unbelievably funny.**

**ccgnme- I wouldn't say stupid, more like desperate….**

**blue-daisies- Action? Yeah, maybe not yet.**

**XKaterinaNightingaleX- Hahaha, that would be funny to see!**

**Chapter name borrowed from….. oh forget it already.**

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN- CREEPY DOLL

Castiel watched curiously as Sam made a beeline for the bathroom, and I looked after him anxiously.

He knelt miserably in front of the toilet, hair hanging in his face.

Dean entered the room, grinning at the sight.

"How you feeling, Sammy?"

He groaned.

"I guess mixing whiskey and Jager wasn't such a gangbuster idea, was it?"

Dean looked hopefully at him.

"I'll bet you don't remember a thing from last night, do you?"

I sucked in a breath, scrutinizing Sam.

"I can still taste the tequila," Sam moaned.

We smiled in relief.

"You know, there's a really good hangover remedy," Dean gloated.

"It's a greasy pork sandwich served up in a dirty ashtray."

Sam heaved, glaring at Dean.

"Oh, I hate you."

"I know you do," Dean grinned.

"Hey, turns out when Grandma Rose was a tyke she had a Creole nanny who wore a hoodoo necklace."

"So you think she taught Rose hoodoo?" Sam attempted to get to his feet.

"Yes, I do."

"All right," Sam stood up painfully.

"I think it's time we talked to Rose, then."

~Supernatural~

We approached the door marked 'PRIVATE' and knocked.

"Hello?" Sam called. "Susan?"

Dean looked around furtively.

"Clear?"

Castiel raised his hand.

The lock clicked open and we crept inside.

I glanced uneasily at the dolls in the room, hurrying up the dimly lit staircase I saw up ahead.

I pointed silently at the small room.

The door was ajar.

Rose was seated in a wheelchair facing away from us.

We moved forward cautiously.

"Mrs. Thompson?" Sam said gently. "Mrs. Thompson?"

Rose was trembling, staring blankly into space.

"Rose? Hi, Mrs. Thompson, we're not here to hurt you, it's okay-"

She did not respond, shuddering harder.

"Rose?"

Castiel took a step forward, gazing at the woman.

"This woman's had a stroke," He said quietly.

"She's innocent."

We stopped short as Susan came in.

"What the hell? What are you doing in here?"

"Oh, we just wanted to talk to Rose," Sam spluttered.

"Well, the door was open," Dean said at the same time.

"Look at her, she's scared out of her wits," Susan glowered at us accusingly.

"I want you out of my hotel in two minutes or I'm calling the cops."

We left without hesitation.

…

The car revved up of it's own accord, and Sam dashed forward, tackling Susan away.

"Are you okay?"

"I think so," Susan stammered.

We helped her into the inn.

"Whisky," She rasped as soon as she could speak.

"Sure." Sam held out a glass. "I know the feeling."

Susan gulped it down.

"What the hell happened out there?"

"Do you want the truth?" Castiel looked at her searchingly.

"Of course," Susan blinked.

"Well, at first we thought it was some sort of hoodoo curse, but that out there?"

Dean glanced outside.

"That was definitely a spirit."

She looked at us dazedly.

"You're insane."

Dean shrugged.

"It's been said."

"Look, I'm sorry, Susan," Sam sighed.

"We don't exactly have time to ease you into this, but we need to know when your mother had the stroke."

"What does that have to do with any-"

"Just answer the question," Sam cut her off.

She looked from face to face confusedly.

"About a month ago."

"Right before the killings began," Sam nodded to himself, unsurprised.

Castiel stood up.

"She used the hoodoo to protect the people here."

"She was using the five spot urns to ward off the spirit," Dean cursed loudly, kicking at his chair.

"Right," I picked up the fallen chair. "Until she had a stroke and she couldn't anymore."

Susan laughed hysterically.

"I don't believe this."

"Listen, sister," Dean lost his patience.

"That car didn't try to run you down by itself, okay? I mean, I guess it did, technically, but the spirit can—forget it."

Sam hastily interrupted.

"Look, believe what you want. But the fact is you and your family are in danger, all right? So you need to clear everybody out of here, your employees, your mother, your daughters, everyone."

"Um," Susan stuttered. "I only have one daughter."

"One?"

"I thought Tyler had a sister named Maggie," Dean frowned.

"Maggie's imaginary."

~Supernatural~

Susan led us up to the playroom.

"Tyler!"

The floor was littered with broken dolls.

Susan started to panic.

"Oh my god. Tyler. Tyler! She's not here!"

"Susan." Castiel's voice stopped her short.

"Tell us what you know about Maggie."

"Uh, not much." Her eyes flitted across the room.

"Tyler's been talking about her since Mom got sick."

"Okay," Sam pinched his nose.

"Did you ever know anyone by that name?"

"Uh, no…."

"Think," Dean urged.

"I mean, somebody that could have lived here, might have passed away?"

"Oh my god." Susan flattened a hand against her mouth.

"My mom. My mom had a sister named Margaret. She barely spoke about her."

"Did Margaret happen to die here when she was a kid?"

"She drowned in the pool.

"Come on."

Dean dragged me with him.

…

We ran through the gardens to the pool house.

We pounded on the door, but it was locked tight.

Castiel stared at it, and the door opened noiselessly.

"Tyler!" Susan called.

Something jerked the girl forward.

She fell into the pool with a scream.

Sam instantly jumped in after her, yelling: "Get downstairs!"

We dashed around the other side of the building, and Dean kicked the door open.

Sam resurfaced from the pool, pulling an unconscious Tyler onto the patio.

She coughed, spewing out water.

"Thank god!" Susan wrapped her arms around Tyler.

"Tyler?" I asked gently. "Do you see Maggie anywhere?"

"No," She nestled close to Susan. "She's gone."

…

"I don't get it," Dean leant against the railing of the staircase.

"Did Maggie just stop?"

"Seems like it," Sam shrugged.

"Well, where the hell did she go?"

Upstairs, Susan screamed.

We ran up the stairs, two at a time.

Rose was slumped in her wheelchair.

She was dead.

~Supernatural~

We watched Susan leave in silence.

Dean smirked as Susan hugged Sam.

"Feels good getting back in the saddle, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, it does."

Sam looked at us pointedly.

"But it doesn't change what we talked about last night."

I squirmed.

"We talked about a lot of things last night."

Sam glared at Dean.

"You know what I mean."

"Sam, you were wasted."

He stiffened, stretching to his full height.

"But both of you weren't. And you promised."


	19. Glory Be

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Garideth- Um, I haven't really noticed…. **

**ccgnme- Haha, yeah, I suppose so!**

**Chapter name borrowed from Servant Song.**

CHAPTER NINETEEN- GLORY BE

Castiel cocked his head on one side, staring at Dean with fascination bordering on disgust.

Dean ignored him, stretching out on the hotel bed while it vibrated violently.

Dean did not notice Sam as he entered.

"Hey."

Sam smacked Dean's boot.

"Hey!"

Dean nodded at him.

"Man, you gotta try this, I mean there really is magic in the Magic Fingers."

Sam eyed him oddly.

"Dean, you're enjoying that way too much, it's kind of making me uncomfortable."

I bit back a smile as Dean held up his hands, frustrated.

"What am I supposed to do? I mean, you've got me on lockdown here, I'm bored out of my skull."

"Hey, you were the bank robber on the eleven o'clock news,"

Sam sat down on the opposite bed.

"We can't risk you just walking into a government facility."

Dean grumbled indistinctly.

"Hey, angel, stop staring at me like that. Gives me the creeps."

I laughed at Castiel's expression as he turned away from Dean, affronted.

Sam waved a dismissing hand at Dean as he went into the bathroom.

The bed shuddered into stillness.

"Aw, damn it!" Dean swore. "That was my last quarter!"

Dean pulled out his headphones, leaning on the doorway to the bathroom where Sam was washing his face.

"Hey, you got any quarters?"

"No."

Dean turned to me.

"Bambi?"

I reached into my handbag when Sam snatched it away.

"Don't give it to him! It's unhealthy!"

I hastily stifled a chuckle as Dean grunted in discontent.

"So did you get in to see that crazy hooker?"

"Yeah," Sam nodded. "Gloria Sitnick. And I'm not so sure she's crazy."

Dean glanced at him.

"But she seriously believes she was touched by an angel?"

Castiel stiffened as Sam continued.

"Yeah. Blinding light, feelings of spiritual ecstasy, the works. I mean, she's living in a locked ward and she's totally at peace. She's the second one in this town who murdered someone because they thought an angel told them to."

Castiel stood up, cutting off the both of them.

"I'll look into it. I think it's highly doubtful one of my brothers would do this, but if you wish it so…"

He promptly disappeared.

~Supernatural~

Dean pulled up in front of the murdered man's house.

He mounted the steps and saw the plastic angel on the porch.

"Oh, hey, Sam," Dean pointed at it.

"I think I found it. It's a sign from up above."

He peered in the window.

"Well, I think I learned a valuable lesson. Always take down your Christmas decorations after New Year's, or you might get filleted by a hooker from God. Ha. "

Sam looked at him tiredly.

"I'm laughing on the inside."

We wandered around back and found a wooden storm cellar.

"You know, Gloria did say Carl Gully was guilty to his deepest foundations."

Dean raised an eyebrow at Sam.

"You think she literally meant the foundation?"

We opened the creaking door, shining our flashlights down the stairs.

"Hmm."

I caught hold of Sam's sleeve as I noticed the scratches on the wall.

"Hey," Sam leaned in to get a closer look.

Dean looked up.

"You got something?"

Sam dug at the wall and pulled something out.

"What is it?" I asked, full of trepidation.

He held it aloft.

"It's a fingernail."

Dean pulled two shovels from the wall and began to dig.

Twenty minutes later, the deep pit they'd dug revealed a pile of human skeletons.

Sam huffed.

"So much for the innocent churchgoing librarian."

~Supernatural~

I sat in the hotel room, glancing at the sleeping Dean.

"It's not an angel," Castiel appeared behind me.

I nodded, not really surprised.

Castiel surveyed me intently.

"You are disappointed."

Silently, I cursed myself for my transparency.

"I just….. how do I say this?"

I rested my chin on my hands.

"I guess I was hoping….. maybe there's some good in the world left. It would have been nice if I could feel there was something good to outweigh the bad."

I laughed mirthlessly.

"Guess not."

Castiel's question surprised me.

"Do you believe in God, Odette?"

I stared at him, considering the question.

"Of course I do, Castiel, who else would've made you?"

I looked down again.

"I've just lost all respect for him."

…

"There's been another case," Dean climbed over the fence, pulling me over with him.

Sam followed easily.

"Zach Smith, some old drunk, stabbed a stranger in the heart. Confessed right after."

We entered the dead man's house.

Sam sat at the computer as Dean searched the room.

"Find anything?"

Dean shook his head.

"You?"

"Not much here, except he's got this one locked file on his computer, I can't…."

Sam pressed a few buttons, then grinned in triumph.

"Not anymore. God."

Sam wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"What?"

"Well, he's got all these emails to a lady named Jennifer."

Sam waited a beat.

"This lady who's thirteen years old."

"Oh, I don't want to hear this," Dean looked revolted.

"Looks like they met in a chat room," I stared at the screen.

"These emails are pretty personal. Setting up a time and place to meet and everything."

I stopped, repulsed.

"Great."

I glanced at the screen again.

"They were supposed to meet today."

~Supernatural~

Dean and Sam burst in, making me jump in alarm.

"We went to the church those three guys went to," Dean explained.

"Apparently, a Father Gregory died two months ago, just before the attacks happened. I mean, a devoted priest gets murdered?"

"Prime vengeful spirit material."

Sam shifted uncomfortably.

Dean ignored him.

"We'd better check the church out."

…

The crypt was a maze of stone hallways as we explored.

I glanced nervously at the stone angel figurines as Dean and I moved into a different room.

We heard Sam's startled exclamation and ran back, seeing him in a dead faint on the floor.

Dean crouched down in an instant.

"Sammy? Sammy! Hey!"

Sam jerked awake, groaning.

"You okay?"

Sam ignored him, getting to his feet.

"I've seen it. I've seen the angel."


	20. Come, Holy Spirit

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**XKaterinaNightingaleX- Thank you! Yeah, that was my favorite scene in the episode!**

**ccgnme- Haha, yeah, I thought it would be a totally Sam thing to say.**

**blue-daisies- Yeah, I'm notoriously known for my cliffies. **

**Garideth- Haha, yeah, I love that line too, but Cas comes first, after all!**

**By the way, fanfiction is being a pain, and it doesn't let my stories show up, so you're gonna have to read this from my profile.**

**Chapter name borrowed from a Roman- Catholic prayer.**

**Wow, that sounded odd.**

**Lyrics borrowed from Collin Raye.**

_If you get there before I do, don't give up on me,_

_I'll meet you when my chores are through, _

_I don't know how long I'll be,_

_But I'm not gonna let you down, darling, wait and see,_

_And between now and then, till I see you again,_

_I'll be loving you._

_Love, Me._

CHAPTER TWENTY- COME, HOLY SPIRIT

"It's not an angel."

Castiel almost looked close to annoyance as Sam refused to believe him.

"Maybe it's hiding from you, Castiel," Sam forged ahead.

"Maybe it's stronger."

I glanced uneasily between the two of them as Castiel's eyes flashed.

"Uh-"

Dean saw it, too, and pulled Sam away.

"Drop it, Sam, I've got proof we're dealing with a spirit."

~Supernatural~

Father Gregory's tombstone was covered in creeping vines.

Sam crouched down next to it.

"That looks like-"

"It's wormwood," Dean nodded.

"Plant associated with the dead; specifically the ones that are not at rest. I don't see it growing anywhere else, do you? It's him, Sam."

"Maybe."

Dean sighed in exasperation.

"Maybe? Sam, you heard Castiel. You're seeing the wormwood. What else do you need?"

Sam turned away.

"Dean, I don't know what to think."

"Fine."

Dean stood up.

"You want more proof? We'll summon Gregory's spirit."

"What?" Sam's eyebrows shot up.

"Here? In the church?"

"Yeah," Dean walked away from the crypt.

"We just need a few odds and ends, and that séance ritual in Dad's journal."

"Oh, a séance, great." Sam rolled his eyes.

"Hope Whoopi's available."

"That's funny, actually," Dean deadpanned. "Now, come on."

…

We left the small grocery store.

Sam smiled as he held the paper bag.

"Dude. I'll admit we've gone pretty ghetto with spellwork before, but this takes the cake. I mean, a Spongebob placemat instead of an altar cloth?"

Dean was unruffled, smirking slightly at Castiel's face.

"We'll just put it Spongebob side down."

I laughed with Sam, looking curiously at him when he stopped in shock, staring at the man across the street.

"Dean, that's it."

"What?"

Sam pointed at him.

"That's him, Dean! We have to stop him."

The man crossed the street, and Sam made to go after him.

Dean pulled him back.

"Wait a minute."

"What are you doing?" Sam demanded.

"Let me go."

Dean glared at him.

"You're not going to kill somebody because a ghost told you to, are you insane?"

Sam returned his scowl.

"Dean, I'm not insane, I'm not going to kill him. I'm going to stop him."

"Define 'stop, huh?" Dean raised an eyebrow.

"I mean, what are you going to do?"

"Dean, please," Sam pleaded.

"He's going to hurt someone, you know it."

Dean capitulated surprisingly easily.

"All right, come on."

_Too_ easily.

The boy had gotten into his car and pulled away.

Dean got into the driver's side of the car.

I was almost about to slide into the backseat when Sam found the door was locked.

"Dean," Sam fumed. "Unlock my door."

Dean shook his head.

"You're not killing anyone, Sam. I got this guy, you do the séance."

He jerked a hand at me.

"Take Bambi with you. Pretty Boy can keep you company."

Castiel bridled in indignation.

~Supernatural~

Sam knelt before Gregory's grave as I spread out the small white candles around the large black one.

I bit back a smile as I noticed the Spongebob placemat.

Castiel eyed it with ill-concealed dislike.

Sam picked up the journal and started reading.

"Amate spiritus obscure, te quaerimus, te oramus nobiscum colloquere aput nos circita."

I sprinkled the herbs on the black candle, and it flared brightly.

I squeaked in alarm as another priest entered.

"What are you doing? What is this?"

Sam stood up uneasily.

"Uh, Father, please. I can explain. Um…. actually, maybe I can't."

He swallowed.

"Um. This is a, a séance."

"A séance?"

Father Reynold's voice rose.

"Enough. You're coming with me."

"Father, please, just wait a second!"

He pulled us to the exit, freezing as Castiel stiffened.

"Stop."

A bright, white glow filled the room, and I flung an arm over my eyes.

I placed a hand on Sam's arm as his face crumpled in disappointment.

Father Reynolds stared in awe.

"Oh my god! Is that, is that an angel?"

Castiel pulled me away from the light.

"Hardly. I'm the angel."

The priest gaped at him.

"No, it's not," Sam said bitterly. "It's just Father Gregory."

The light coalesced into a young, handsome priest.

"Thomas?"

Gregory smiled.

"I've come in answer to your prayers."

…

Sam approached the spirit cautiously.

"Sam." He turned around to face him.

"I thought I sent you on your path. You should hurry."

"Father, I'm sorry," Sam shook his head. "But you're not an angel."

"Of course I am," Gregory looked at him in disbelief.

"No."

Castiel crossed the floor.

"You are a man, Thomas. A spirit. And you need to rest."

Gregory looked at him confusedly.

"I was a man."

Castiel shook his head, holding out his hand.

It glowed with bluish-black light.

"Men cannot be angels. I am an angel, not you."

Father Gregory looked at him, perplexed.

"But they asked for help."

Castiel gripped his arm.

"It's time you went, Thomas. You have served God well. It's time to go."

The priest's eyes flitted around helplessly.

"But-"

Castiel stopped him.

"Your place in heaven is granted, Thomas. Let me help you."

Father Gregory hung his head.

Castiel stepped forward, placing a hand on his forehead.

Gregory's form flickered.

"Be at peace."

Father Gregory vanished.

~Supernatural~

I sat on my bed, the photo album heavy in my hands.

I opened it finally, almost reluctantly, starting in surprise as a square of cream paper fell out.

I looked at the name written in spiky green ink on the paper.

_Odette_.

I froze.

I knew that untidy scrawl.

I opened the letter with numb fingers, steeling myself to read it.

_Dear Odette,_

_This is probably stupid, and I know you'll make fun of me later, but I had to write this. It's also pretty morbid, but then again, you knew that anyway._

_I promised you I'd never leave you, and I mean to keep that promise. But if something happens to me, I just want you to know that I love you, and that you've got to keep going._

_We've been through hell together; Odette, and you're the bravest person I know._

_Live up to that._

_You're strong, you don't need me. _

_Just keep going._

_If I'm gone, you still have your family._

_You have Sarah, and most importantly, you have your brother._

_That's all you'll ever need._

_And if I'm ever gone, Odette, don't cry for me._

_I'll always be there, even when you think I'm not._

_You're the most amazing person I've ever met, Odette, and you could have anything and everything you ever wanted._

_I've made you a promise, now you have to promise me something._

_If I'm not around anymore, promise me you won't give up._

_Promise me you'll keep going, and you'll live your life to the best you can._

_I know you can do it._

_That's all I'm asking from you._

_Promise me._

_Any minute now, you're going to walk through this door and laugh at me for writing something this sappy, and I know everything will be all right._

_But I have to be sure._

_So, keep living, Odette, and be the beautiful, quirky, zany, wonderful person you've always been._

_Never give up hope._

_Carry on, the way you always have, and I'll be the happiest boy on earth._

_That's all I ever want._

_Things will get better, Odette, I promise._

_I've never broken a promise to you yet, and this time will be no different._

_You're going to be happy, Odette._

_I'll make sure of it._

_All my love,_

_Jared._

The letter fell from my fingers as the hole in my chest pulsed with pain, and I curled into a ball on my bed, tears leaking out from under my eyelids.

I picked it up and smoothed it out, putting it in the pocket over my chest.

"I promise, Jared," I whispered.

"Even if it kills me, I promise."

And I buried my head in my hands and sobbed.


	21. Gifts And Curses

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**ccgnme- Ahem, angst is what I do best!**

**Garideth- Yup! Thank you! (My sniffling is justified, then?)**

**Chapter name borrowed from Yellowcard.**

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE- GIFTS AND CURSES

Dean leaned against his car, fidgeting.

I raised a hand to put it on his shoulder, but thought better of it and let it fall.

"Ellen, it's me again," Dean clutched the phone tightly.

"Any chance you've heard from him?"

He paused.

"I swear, it's like looking for my dad all over again, I'm losing my mind here."

Dean waited a beat.

"No, I've called him a thousand times, there's nothing but voicemail. I don't know where he went or why. Sam's just gone."

His cell phone beeped.

"Hang on."

I stiffened as Dean started speaking.

"Sammy? Where the hell are you? Are you okay?"

Dean frowned.

"Hey, hey, hey! Calm down. Where are you? All right, don't move, I'm on my way."

~Supernatural~

We walked down the narrow hallway, checking the door numbers until we reached room 109.

Dean knocked sharply.

"Sam, it's me. Sam!"

I tried the door- it was open.

We went inside.

Sam did not move as he sat numbly on the bed.

"Sam? Hey."

I sat next to him, taking his hand to stare at the blood.

"Hey," Sam replied dazedly.

Dean knelt beside him.

"Are you bleeding?"

"I tried to wash it off," Sam's eyes unfocused.

I plucked at Sam's blood soaked shirt.

Dean batted away my hand, searching for a wound.

"Oh my god."

Sam gulped.

"I don't think it's my blood."

Dean rocked back on his heels.

"Whose is it?"

"I don't know," Sam said, panicked.

"Sam, what the hell happened?"

Sam finally looked up.

"I don't remember anything."

…

Dean returned to the room, rolling his eyes at my arm slung around Sam's shoulder.

"What'd you find out?"

"You checked in two days ago under the name Richard Sambora," Dean straddled a chair.

"Of course, I think the scariest part about this whole thing is the fact that you're a Bon Jovi fan."

"Dean." Sam was not amused.

"Your room's been quiet, nobody's noticed anything unusual," Dean added.

Sam snorted in disbelief.

"You mean no one saw me walking around covered in blood?"

"Yeah," Dean nodded. "That's what I mean."

Sam threw up his hands in the air.

"Then how the hell did I get here? What happened to me?"

I squeezed Sam's shoulder.

"You're okay, Sam. That's all that matters."

"Oh, really?"

Sam flopped down on the bed.

"'Cause what if I hurt someone? Or worse?"

Dean sighed.

"Sam….."

"What if this is what Dad warned you about?"

"Hey, whoa, whoa, come on, man," Dean said cautiously.

"Let's not jump the gun here. We don't know what happened. We've just got to treat this like, like any other job. What's the last thing you remember?"

Sam huffed.

"We were in that hotel room in West Texas, going out to grab some burgers, and….."

My mouth fell open.

"West Texas?" Dean interrupted.

"That was, that was over a week ago."

"That's it."

Dean looked stunned.

"Next thing I knew I was sitting here," Sam closed his eyes.

"Bloody. Felt like I'd been asleep for a month."

"Okay," Dean swallowed. "Retrace your steps. The manager said you left yesterday afternoon and he never saw you come back, so…."

He pulled back the curtain.

"Hey."

A bloody fingerprint was smeared on the window.

~Supernatural~

We walked outside the motel slowly.

The rain fell on my hair like a fine mist, and I stared at Sam anxiously.

"Recognize anything?"

Sam shook his head at Dean.

"Not really."

We went towards the garage out back.

"Wait."

"What?"

Dean turned around.

"I think I was here," Sam said slowly.

"You remember?" I asked hopefully.

"Not really, it just feels familiar, you know?"

Dean shrugged, going to the nearest garage.

Sam looked over to the second and pointed.

"Try that one. Yeah."

He tugged on the padlock.

"Okay."

"Wait," Sam dug in his pocket, frowning.

He pulled out a small silver key.

Dean unlocked the garage, cocking an eyebrow at Sam.

He pulled it open, and I glanced confusedly at the filthy beat-up VW Beetle inside.

Dean groaned.

"Oh, please tell me you didn't steal this."

Sam shifted uncomfortably.

We crept inside, pulling open the doors.

Sam swiped a finger against the wheel, showing us his stained finger.

"More blood."

"Sam," My voice shook. "Back seat."

He reached down, picking up a blood-stained knife that stuck to the floor of the backseat.

We stared at it.

"You think I used this on someone?"

Dean flexed his jaw.

"I'm not thinking anything."

Sam rubbed the knife off on the inside of his jacket.

Dean picked up a pack of cigarettes.

"Okay, now this is disturbing. Come on, man, this couldn't have been you. Had to have been someone else, someone who.."

He sniffed the pack.

"Smokes menthols."

"Here," Sam held out a slip of paper.

"Gas receipt. Few towns over."

…

We pulled up at the small gas station.

"All right," Dean got out.

"Receipt's for ten gallons at pump number two. You getting any, uh, any goosebumps yet? God, this looks familiar, déjà vu vibes?"

Sam shook his head quietly.

I caught hold of his arm.

"Maybe someone inside will remember you. Come on."

The clerk looked up in shock, then in anger as we entered the convenience store.

"You!" He spat at Sam. "Outta here now, I'm calling the cops!"

Dean blinked at him.

"You talking to him?"

The clerk did not shift his gaze from Sam.

"Yeah, I'm talking to him. Jerk comes in yesterday, stinking drunk, grabs a forty from the fridge, starts chugging it."

"This guy?"

Dean rounded on Sam.

"You're drinking malt liquor?"

"Not after he whipped the friggin' bottle at my head." The clerk glared at him.

I stared at him in disbelief.

"This guy?"

"What, am I speaking Urdu?" He snapped at me.

"Look," Sam held up his hands. "I'm really sorry if I did anything."

"Tell your story walkin', pal. Police will be here in five."

"Wait, wait," Dean spread out his hands in a placatory gesture.

"Put the phone down. Sam, go wait in the car."

"But-"

"Go wait in the car!"

Dean jerked his head at me to follow him.

~Supernatural~

Dean banged the door open, and I jumped to my feet.

I had a bad feeling about this.

"What's going on?"

"Shut up," Dean snarled, pushing me away.

I blinked hard, looking at Sam for an explanation.

Sam's face was ashen.

"Murder. I killed a hunter."

My head swiveled wildly from Sam to Dean.

"You _what?_"

"Maybe," Dean scowled at me. "We don't know that for sure."

Sam scoffed.

"Hey, we don't know," Dean insisted. "Maybe it was a shapeshifter."

"Oh, come on," Sam kicked the bedpost.

"You know it wasn't, you saw the tape. There was no eye flare, no distortion."

"Yeah, but it wasn't you!" Dean yelled. "All right? I mean, yeah, it might have been you, but it wasn't you."

"Well, I think it was."

Sam sat down on the bed.

"I think maybe more than you know."

"What the hell does that mean?" Dean growled.

"For the last few weeks I've been having…. I've been having these feelings."

"What feelings?" Dean's voice dropped lower.

"Rage. Hate. And I can't stop it. It just gets worse. Day by day it gets worse."

Dean inhaled sharply.

"You never told me this."

Sam did not meet our eyes.

"I didn't want to scare either of you."

Dean laughed mirthlessly.

"Well, bang-up job on that."

Sam ignored him.

"The yellow-eyed demon, you know he has plans for me. And we both know that he's turned other children into killers before, too."

"No one can control you but you."

"It sure doesn't seem like it," Sam said bitterly.

"It feels like no matter what I do, slowly but surely, I'm, I'm becoming…"

"What?" Dean demanded.

"Who I'm meant to be. I mean, you said it once yourself, Dean. I gotta face up to who I am."

"I didn't mean this!" Dean exploded.

"But it's still true," Sam said quietly.

"You know that. Dad knew that too, that's why he told you, if it ever come to this….."

"Shut up, Sam."

Sam stood up.

"Dean, you promised. Both of you promised."

"No," I whispered.

"No, listen to me," Dean pleaded.

"We're going to figure this out, okay? I mean, there's got to be a way, right?"

"Yeah, there is."

He pulled out a handgun from his duffle, shoving it at Dean.

"I don't want to hurt anyone else. I don't want to hurt both of you."

"You won't," Dean urged. "Whatever this is, you can fight it."

The tears collected in Sam's eyes.

"No, I can't. Not forever. Here, you gotta do it."

Sam grabbed Dean's hand, placing the gun in it.

"I've tried so hard to keep you safe," Dean murmured.

"No!" I stood up. "You can't-"

Sam cut me off.

"I know."

"I can't," Dean dropped the gun. "I'd rather die."

"No," Sam muttered. "You'll live."

He picked up the gun.

"You'll live to regret this."

Sam pistol-whipped Dean.

He fell to the floor, unconscious.

Before I could do anything, Sam hit me on the head with the butt of his pistol.

Everything went black.

~Supernatural~

"Kid." Someone shook me uncharacteristically gently. "Wake up."

I moaned, burying my head in….. was that leather?

"_Bambi_. Up and at 'em, kid."

I ran my tongue over my mouth, wincing at the unpleasant taste.

I blinked, staring up at Dean's face.

"Wha-"

"Come on," Dean pulled me out of the Impala.

"Where's Sam?"

Dean's face tightened.

"Later. Come on."

I walked into the hotel room, staring at Dean expectantly.

"Duluth, Minnesota," Dean answered my unspoken question.

"I'm going to find him."

I looked at him questioningly.

"Why are we here, then?"

Dean looked at me stubbornly.

"The room's for you."

It sunk in only after a minute.

"No! I'm coming with you!"

Dean caught me in his iron grip.

"No, you're not. Sam's not himself, and you could get hurt. I don't want another death on my hands."

"No!" I said loudly, wriggling in his grasp.

Dean glowered at me.

"Kid, I will tie you to this chair if I have to."

"But-"

"No!" Dean yelled.

"When are you going to get it? All you could do is weigh me down!"

I stopped, hitching in a breath.

I had no retort now.

Dean blinked at me.

"I didn't…."

He pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Just stay here."

Dean walked out of the room, locking it from outside.

Hours passed.

I bit my nails anxiously.

Dean should've been back by now.

"He's possessed."

I whirled around to look at Castiel.

I breathed out, slightly less worried.

"Castiel! Where've you been?"

He tilted his head to one side.

"I had my orders. It's Sam. He's possessed by a demon."

Relief flooded through me.

"I knew it. Sam would never do that."

Then I remembered.

"Dean! He doesn't know!"

Castiel walked forward.

"Go. He's in danger."

The door clicked open.

~Supernatural~

I walked quickly through the docks; I'd had to track Dean down myself.

I clutched my flashlight nervously, dialing Dean's number.

"This is Dean. Leave a message."

I hung up with a sigh and continued searching.

_Where are you, Dean?_

I called him again.

I froze as I heard Dean's ringtone coming from below me, near the water.

I ran down to the bottom of the ramp.

Dean was sopping wet, limp and unresponsive.

"Dean! Dean!"

He woke up with a groan.

"Take it easy."

Dean shuddered, moaning in pain.

"How'd you get out?"

"Castiel helped."

I helped him stand up.

"How'd you find me?"

Dean leant on me heavily as we started walking.

"It was difficult," I shrugged. "But l learnt from the best."

"Where's Sam?"

My smile faded.

"I don't know, Dean."


	22. Evil Come

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Garideth- No, I quite like Jo, I'm just incredibly lazy.**

**ccgnme- Just wait a couple chapters! Dean will get his head straight!**

**XKaterinaNightingaleX- Ah, she's okay, but I was too lazy to add her.**

**blue-daisies- You have? That's good, because I write a lot of it.**

**Chapter name borrowed from….. oh forget it already.**

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO- EVIL COME

Dean was seated at the table, gripping the edge with his uninjured hand.

I swallowed loudly as I dug the bullet out of his left shoulder.

"Just another second."

"God!" Dean clenched his teeth.

"Almost," I quelled my nausea, pulling it out. "All right, got it."

I dropped the bloodstained bullet in a glass of clear alcohol.

Dean took a few generous swigs from his bottle of whisky.

"God, you're a butcher."

I did not answer him, avoiding his gaze.

"All right, are we done?"

"Just give me two minutes to patch you up," I cleaned the blood off my hands.

I continued layering gauze and tape over his wound.

"What did the demon do?"

"Tied up Jo," Dean cursed. "Tried to kill her. Almost killed me."

I nodded, pressing my lips together as I kept working.

"Any idea where's he's headed to next?"

"Well," Dean's eyes narrowed.

"He's been going after the nearest hunter, so…. closest one I know lives in South Dakota."

"Okay," I stuck on the last piece. "You're good to go."

I stood up and moved away, throwing him the pills.

"These should help with the pain."

"Odette?"

I turned around from my way to the door.

"You made it pretty clear, Dean. I'm not going to be of any use to you."

I looked away.

"It's better if I go."

I started walking.

"Wait."

I stopped for the second time as Dean cleared his throat.

"You have as much right to be here as I do. So…. uh," Dean rolled his eyes.

"Just come on," Dean grabbed my jacket and pulled me out the door.

~Supernatural~

Dean tried calling Bobby, until it was cut off.

"Damn it," He growled.

…

We ran into Bobby's house, freezing as we saw Sam tied to a chair, under the same protective circle we'd used on Meg.

"Wha-"

Bobby nodded at us.

"Dean. Kid. Look what the cat dragged in."

Dean smacked the demon in the face to wake him.

"Hey."

Sam looked up at the painted Devil's Trap.

"Dean," He said wryly.

"Back from the dead. Getting to be a regular thing for you, isn't it? Like a cockroach."

Dean gritted his teeth.

"How about I smack that smartass right out of your mouth?"

"Oh, careful, now," Sam clucked his tongue.

"Wouldn't want to bruise this fine packaging."

"Oh, don't worry, this isn't gonna hurt Sam much."

Dean picked up the bucket of holy water.

"You, on the other hand…."

He tossed it at the demon.

It sizzled off of Sam's skin, and the demon screamed in pain.

"Feel like talking now?"

The demon snarled at him.

"Sam's still my meat puppet. I'll make him bite off his tongue."

"No, you won't," Dean flexed his jaw.

"You won't be in him long enough. Bobby."

Bobby began reading in Latin.

"Exorcisamus te, omnis in mundus spiritus omnis satanica potestas, omnis incursio….."

Dean started talking over Bobby.

"See, whatever bitch-boy master plan you demons are cooking up? You're not getting Sam."

Dean crouched down next to him.

"You understand me? Because I will kill every one of you first."

Sam struggled painfully, then threw back his head and cackled.

Bobby stopped in surprise.

"You really think that's what this is about? The master plan? I don't give a rat's ass about the master plan."

"Humiliares sub potente magnu dei…"

"Oops," Sam chuckled.

"Doesn't seem to be working. See, I learned a few new tricks."

He lowered his head, speaking in a deep guttural growl.

"Spiritus in mundus un glorum suarum umitite palatum iram domine…."

The fire behind him flared, and the room shook as he continued.

"This isn't going like I pictured!" Dean pulled me behind him.

"What's going on, Bobby?"

Bobby's eyes flashed to the burn mark on Sam's forearm.

"It's a binding link! It's like a lock! He's locked himself inside Sam's body!"

"What the hell do we do?" Dean roared.

"I don't know!"

The demon threw back his head and screamed.

The ceiling began to crack, breaking the trap in on itself.

Sam's eyes were black as he lowered his head.

"There. That's better."

He jerked his head left, and Bobby went flying to the floor, slumping to the ground, unconscious.

The demon spread his hand, and Dean and I crashed into the wall.

"You know when people want to describe the worst possible thing? They say it's like hell."

Sam knelt in front of us, fisting his hand in Dean's shirt, punching him hard in the face.

I struggled futilely as the demon pinned me against the wall with a flick of his wrist.

"You know there's a reason for that. Hell is like, um….."

He hit Dean again.

"Well, it's like hell. Even for demons."

Sam backhanded Dean across the face.

He was groggy and bleeding heavily.

"It's a prison, made of bone and flesh and blood and fear."

Sam punched him, then held Dean's head steady.

"And you sent me back there."

"Meg," Dean sneered.

I kicked against the wall, frantically trying to unlock my power.

It didn't work.

_Castiel. Help us_.

"No," Meg shook her head. "Not anymore. Now I'm Sam."

She hit him one last time, digging her thumb into Dean's bullet wound.

"By the way, I saw your dad there- he says 'howdy'.

Meg dug her hand in further, and Dean tried to pull her hand away, groaning in pain.

"No!"

She snapped back to me.

"Ah, of course, I couldn't forget you, now could I?"

I screamed in pain, spitting out blood as Meg flexed her hand.

"Poor little thing," She cooed.

"You really are unlucky, aren't you?"

My scream ratcheted up higher as I spat out blood.

"Let her go!" Dean tried to get to his feet.

Meg sent him back to the floor.

"You know, you would be so easy to convince," Meg ran a finger down my cheek.

"After all, don't you want a little payback?"

She stroked my hair.

"Secrets and lies, Odette. That's all you have. That's all you'll ever have."

She smiled.

"Because you couldn't save them, Odette. Because you know this is all gonna end one day."

She put her fingers in a chokehold around my neck.

"Because every morning, you look at your gun, and ask yourself if today is the day you put that round through your skull."

Dean's eyes flashed to my face, and I turned away.

Meg wasn't lying.

Not about this.

_No no no no. _

Not like this.

"Maybe so," I wheezed. "But I made a promise I'd keep going, and I mean to keep it even if it kills me."

_Castiel, please_.

Meg cocked her head to one side, tightening her hands around my neck.

"Yes, I suppose it will."

My vision was flickering now, and Dean's shouts seemed to come from a long way off.

"No! Odette!"

I could hear Castiel clearly, though.

"You should not have done that."

Castiel cupped a hand on Sam's forearm, and Meg threw back her head and screamed, the black smoke billowing out of her mouth.

Sam fell back, and I landed on the floor heavily.

Castiel picked me up by the lapels of my jacket.

"Thanks," I choked out.

Sam wobbled, still on the floor, grabbing his arm in pain.

"Sammy?"

Sam looked at Dean.

"Did I miss anything?"

Dean reared back and punched him in the face.

~Supernatural~

"What do you mean, you only have one room free?" Dean fumed.

The manager blinked nervously.

"I'm sorry, sir. Everything else is full."

"Damn it," Dean grabbed his backpack and stormed off.

We followed more slowly.

"Odette?"

I glanced at Sam.

"I'm so sorry, I was trying so hard to get control, but…."

"It's okay, Sam," I smiled thinly. "Wasn't your fault."

"What the demon said….."

I stiffened.

"You don't want to know, Sam. Trust me."

…

"Sorry, Odette," Sam looked at me apologetically. "I'd share, but…"

He pointed at his feet sheepishly, which were hanging off the narrow bed.

Dean shuffled out of the bathroom, freezing as he saw the situation.

He groaned, burrowing to the side of his bed.

"Kick me in your sleep, kid, and I will end you," Dean warned with a glare, rolling to the side.

I resisted the urge to gulp as I slid in.

Hours passed.

Sleep wouldn't come.

Sam was fast asleep in the other bed, and I presumed Dean was too.

Meg's words pounded in my head.

_You couldn't save them, Odette._

_Secrets and lies._

_That's all you'll ever have_.

I couldn't take it anymore, and I rolled out of bed as quietly as possible.

Dean's arm shot out and stopped me.

"And just where do you think you're going?" He asked testily.

I flinched.

"Did I wake you?"

Dean snorted.

"Stop changing the subject."

I curled into a ball on the bed.

"I couldn't sleep, uh, I was…. too…..."

I didn't finish.

Dean grumbled slightly, sliding onto his back.

"This wouldn't have anything to do with Meg, would it?"

I pressed my lips together.

"It might," I said in a small voice, ducking my head.

I squeaked in surprise as Dean pulled me back on the pillow.

"Go to sleep, Bambi. I won't let anything get you."

Dean was right.

Nothing did.


	23. Tricksters And Fools

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Chapter name borrowed from LYNX.**

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE- TRICKSTERS AND FOOLS

Sam sat on the couch looking through the books, rubbing his face tiredly.

He waved me off when I tried to help him.

"You've got less sleep than I have, Odette, drop it."

I gave up, curling into the nearest armchair.

Dean sat on his bed behind Sam, rapidly polishing off his chili cheese fries.

I glanced at the radio with ill-concealed dislike.

Sam looked up, annoyed.

"Dude. You mind not eating those on my bed?"

Dean shrugged.

"No, I don't mind."

He ate another.

Sam gritted his teeth.

"You know how it's going? Slow. You know how it would go a heck of a lot faster? If I had my computer."

"Hmm," Dean ignored him.

I looked uneasily between them.

"Here, Sam," I held out my own laptop. "Use mine."

"Thank you," Sam said pointedly, glaring at Dean.

He twitched at the music.

"Can you turn that down, please?"

"Yeah, absolutely."

He turned it up louder.

I repressed a sigh.

"You know what?" Sam's left eye twitched.

"Maybe, uh, you should just go somewhere for a while."

Dean shut off the radio and looked up irritably.

"Hey, I'd love to. That's a great idea. Unfortunately, my car's all screwed to hell."

Sam sighed.

"Dean, I told you, I have nothing to do with-"

He was cut off by the reappearance of Castiel.

Dean threw his hands in the air.

"Finally! Some competent assistance!"

Sam scowled.

"Hi, Castiel," I smiled shyly.

"What seems to be the problem?"

Castiel sat down on a chair uncomfortably, looking so out of place I wanted to laugh.

"It's this job we're working," Sam began. "We've never seen anything like it."

"Not even close," Dean shook his head.

Castiel glanced at us.

"Tell me."

"So it all started when we caught wind of an obit. See, a professor took a nosedive from a fourth story window, only there's a campus legend the building's haunted. So we pretexted as reporters from the local paper."

Sam swung around to glower at Dean.

"I found out about the local legend, when Dean was all over this blonde barfly named _Starla_," Sam continued, and I put my head in my hands as he repeated what he'd said to me earlier.

"Fishnets!" Sam finished.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Dean crossed his arms. "Hold on a minute."

"What?" Sam snapped.

"Come on, dude, that's not how it happened."

"No?" Sam raised an eyebrow. "So you never drank a purple nurple?"

"Yeah, maybe that," Dean conceded. "But her name wasn't Starla."

"Then what was it?"

"I don't know."

He turned to Castiel, taking up the story.

"But she was a classy chick. Grad student, anthropology and folklore. We were talking about local ghost stories."

Castiel only looked politely befuddled.

Dean continued, waggling his fingers at Sam threateningly.

"And Sam's all prissy, doesn't even let me get five minutes alone…."

"Right," Sam interrupted sarcastically.

"And that's how it really happened."

Dean shrugged.

"I don't sound like that, Dean!"

Dean was unconcerned.

"That's what you sound like to me."

Castiel stared at them calculatingly.

"You are unusually…. antagonistic towards each other."

"Nothing," Sam swiped at his hair. "It's nothing."

"I find that hard to believe," Castiel said calmly.

"It is uncommon behavior for the two of you."

"Look, it," Sam paused.

"We've just been on the road for too long. Tight quarters, all that. Don't worry about it."

Castiel didn't look as if he believed him, but let the matter drop.

"So, anyway," Sam resumed.

"We figured it might be a haunting, so we went to check the scene of the crime."

Castiel tilted his head.

"So we spoke to the janitor. Apparently, the dead guy used to bring in a lot of girls to his apartment. There was one the night he died, too. The janitor never saw her come out."

Sam threw a dirty look at Dean.

"And _he_," Sam stabbed a finger at Dean.

"Kept stuffing his face with nuts."

"Oh, come on," Dean huffed. "I ate one, maybe two!"

"Just let me tell it, okay?"

"We came back here, and I tried to do some research," Sam frowned at Dean.

"But he ruined my laptop!"

"I did not!" Dean countered.

Castiel looked at me for an explanation.

"We couldn't find anything on the building," I said. "History's clean."

"Then it's not a haunting," Castiel stood up.

"The next thing is pretty weird, even for us," Dean added.

"What is?"

So we told him.

~Supernatural~

If Castiel had been capable of laughing, I think he wouldn't have hesitated to do so at this point.

"Aliens? That is highly improbable, even for…"

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Dean cut him off.

"We thought so too, until we saw the saucer-shaped scorch mark in the park."

"I see."

"And then," Sam exploded. "Dean stole my laptop!"

"You jacked up the Impala!"

"You took my money!"

Sam tackled Dean to the bed, wrestling him.

Dean batted him away, kicking at his legs.

"Hey, guys! Guys!"

I tried to separate them, and ended up squashed between Dean and Sam, fighting for breath.

I couldn't help laughing at the mess we were in.

"Get off!"

"No, _you_ get off!"

"No, you!"

"You're squashing Bambi, Giantopolos!"

I sighed, trying to free myself to no avail.

Castiel pulled us apart easily.

"I know what you're hunting."

Three pairs of eyes flashed to his face.

"The two of you were my biggest clue."

"Quit the drama, Pretty Boy, and tell us already," Dean rolled his eyes.

Castiel stared at him, affronted.

"It's a trickster."


	24. Tricksters And Heroes

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Chapter name borrowed from….. I really don't know.**

**Again.**

CHAPTER TWENTY- FOUR- TRICKSTERS AND HEROES

"So you really think it's the janitor?"

Dean scowled and nodded.

"Yeah, Sam, who else has been here from the get-go?"

Sam didn't look convinced, but entered the building nevertheless.

The janitor greeted us brightly.

"Come on, then," He led us up a staircase.

Dean signaled to Sam behind his back.

"We just need to check a couple offices up on three."

"No problem."

Sam paused.

"I, uh, forgot something in the truck. You know what? I'll catch up with you guys."

"Okay."

Sam hurried back, and I could faintly discern the shape of the lockpicks in his jeans.

~Supernatural~

"Just 'cause he reads the Weekly World News doesn't mean he's our guy," Sam argued.

"I'm telling you, it's him."

"Look, I just think we need some hard proof. That's all," Sam's tone was strained.

"Another thing Castiel said," Dean added.

"These suckers have a metabolism like an insect, real sweet tooth."

"I didn't find any candy bars or sugar," Sam pointed out.

"Not even Equal."

"Probably missed something," Dean shrugged.

Sam's nostrils flared.

"I don't miss things."

"Oh, right," Dean rolled his eyes. "'Cause you're Mr. Perfect."

"What?" Sam huffed.

"Are you really still pissed at me 'cause of what the trickster did?"

"You've been a tight ass long before the trickster showed up," Dean returned.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the janitor watching us from an upper storey window.

"Look," Sam breathed out heavily.

"Just stay here with Odette, keep an eye on the janitor. I'll go to his place to see if I can find any actual evidence before you go barging in and staking the man!"

"I'm not babysitting some kid, Sam!" Dean yelled.

"I've got better things to do!"

I winced at the underlying accusation.

Sam had already left.

"Damn it," Dean growled, pacing restlessly.

I stayed out of his way.

…

Night fell.

Dean was still waiting impatiently.

"Eh, screw this," Dean jerked open the door.

"But-"

"Shut up and get in," Dean dragged me inside.

We poked around cautiously, and Dean shone his flashlight at the room.

As we went up the last staircase, he put the flashlight away, pulling out a large wooden stake.

Dean froze as something snapped behind him.

He tucked the stake in his jacket, shuffling me behind him.

We entered the theater on the side.

On the stage was a round red bed with a tacky red canopy and a slowly rotating disco ball.

Two attractive women were curled up on it.

"We've been waiting for you, Dean," The brunette said with a wide smile.

"Y-Y-You guys aren't real," Dean stammered.

The brunette laughed.

"Trust me, sugar, it's gonna feel real."

Dean swallowed nervously.

"Come on," The blonde cooed. "Let us give you a massage."

"You know, I'm a—I'm a sucker for a happy ending," Dean blinked rapidly.

"Really, I am, but… I- I'm gonna have to pass."

"They're a peace offering," We spun around to look at the trickster sitting in the audience.

"I know what you and your brother do. I've been around a while. Run into your kind before."

"Well, then," Dean clutched the stake.

"You know I can't let you just keep hurting people."

"Come on!" The trickster urged.

"Those people got what was coming to them. Hoisted on their own petards. But you and Sam—I like you."

He turned to me.

"And there's no reason I'd harm a little girl, now would I?"

I bridled indignantly.

"So treat yourself, long as you want," The trickster smiled.

"Just let me move on to the next town."

"Yeah," Dean shook his head slowly.

"I don't think I can let you do that."

'"I don't want to hurt you. And you know that I can."

"Look, man," Dean grinned.

"I got to tell you, I dig your style, all right?"

"I mean," Dean chuckled. "The slow-dancing alien?"

"One of my personal favorites," He nodded. "Yeah."

"But, uh," Dean clutched the stake. "I can't let you go."

"Too bad," The trickster frowned.

"Like I said, I like you. Sam was right. You shouldn't have come alone."

"Well, I'll agree with you there," Dean nodded.

The door slammed shut.

We looked up to see Sam and Castiel, clutching a stake of their own.

"That fight you guys had," The trickster paused.

"That was a trick? Hmm. Not bad. But you want to see a real trick?"

A masked man with a chainsaw appeared near the other two.

The brunette attacked Dean.

The trickster watched, entertained, as Castiel and Sam grappled with the chainsaw man and Dean fought the women.

They threw him into the seats.

"Nice toss, ladies," The trickster whistled appreciatively.

The stake fell to the floor.

I whipped my head from side to side.

I had no choice.

I crept forward slowly.

The trickster did not look at me.

I picked up Dean's stake, and he shot me an incredulous look.

_What the hell do you think you're doing? _He mouthed.

I ignored him, moving forward.

Sam turned back to look at me, instantly seeing the stake.

He tried to move away, but narrowly escaped the chainsaw man's advance.

Castiel looked at me impassively, then blinked at me slowly.

I nodded once, understanding the signal.

I sidled behind the trickster, and stabbed the stake in his heart.

I dimly noticed the women and the chainsaw man disappear, but all I could see was the blood swirling in my hands.

I'd just killed someone.

Maybe it was a monster, but kill him I had.

What had I become?

The stake clattered to the floor.

~Supernatural~

"Hey, Castiel, do you mind-"

Before I could finish, he was already there.

"What do you require?"

I looked at him oddly.

"Nothing, really, Castiel."

He tilted his head.

"Then why ask for my assistance?"

I shook my head at him.

"Can't I call you just for your company, Castiel?"

I seemed to have finally caught him off guard.

"I suppose…. so."

I laughed at his confused expression.

"Honestly, Cas."

Both of us froze as the name escaped my lips.

I couldn't meet his eyes for more than a second.

_Cas_.

I knew what we were both thinking, for once.

"_I guess it's a sign of affection, Castiel. It means you're important to the person who gave you the name. That you belong."_

I forced myself to hold his gaze.

"_It shows you care._"


	25. Of Wolf And Man

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Yeah, that's right, I'm skipping Roadkill. **

**You know what this means, right?**

**Odette's secret is out in the next chapter!**

**Who's excited?**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Chapter name borrowed from Metallica.**

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE- OF WOLF AND MAN

"We've gotta talk," Sam led us out of the door grimly.

I shifted unhappily, massaging my aching head.

I was miserable.

I was back in New York, again, and not being able to see Sarah…. or… or him was upsetting me.

Plus this case.

How were we supposed to murder this girl in cold blood?

Sam liked Madison.

I hadn't seen him smile like that in weeks.

"She says she has no idea what I'm talking about," Sam added.

"She's lying," Dean said flatly.

"Or maybe she really doesn't know she's changing, you know?" Sam persuaded.

"Maybe when the werewolf takes over, she blacks out."

"Like a really hot Incredible Hulk," Dean deadpanned.

"Come on, dude, she ganked her boss and her ex-boyfriend! That doesn't sound rash and unconscious."

"Yeah, but what if it was, Dean?" Sam urged.

What if some animal part of her brain saw both those guys as threats? Hell, the cop too."

"What are you, the Dog Whisperer now?" Dean demanded.

"Look, man," Sam sighed wearily.

"I just…. I don't know, there was something in her eyes…."

"Yeah," Dean exploded. "She's killing people!"

"But if she has no control over it-" Sam objected.

"Exactly," Dean interrupted.

"She can't control it. Even if she's telling the truth, it's not gonna change anything."

"I'm not putting a bullet through some girl's chest who has no idea what's happening," Sam said resolutely.

"Sam, she's a monster," Dean rubbed his head.

"You're feeling sorry for her?"

"Maybe I understand her," Sam looked down.

He paused.

"Look, there might be another way we can get the job done without having to waste her."

Dean raised an eyebrow.

"Are you thinking what I think you're thinking?"

Sam flipped through John's journal.

"Dad's theory— 'lycanthropy might have a cure if you kill the werewolf who bit you, severing the bloodline.'"

"Might have a cure," Dean emphasized.

"Meaning 'who the hell knows?'"

"It's worth a shot," Sam shrugged.

"We don't even know where to start looking, all right?"

Dean paced impatiently.

"I mean, the puppy that bit her could be anyone, anywhere. It could've been years ago."

Something flashed in Sam's eyes.

"No. I don't think so."

We followed him back to the living room.

Madison was still tied up.

"Madison, when were you mugged? Please. It's important, all right? Just answer the question."

She looked at us apprehensively.

"About a month ago."

"Did you see the guy?" Sam asked anxiously.

"No," Madison shook her head. "He grabbed me from behind."

"Did he bite you?"

She paused.

"How did you know that?"

"Where?"

"On the back of my neck."

Sam set his gun down and brushed her hair away, exposing a bruised lump the size of a golf ball.

Dean peered at it.

"Oh, that's just a love bite. Believe me, that could have been a lot worse. Where were you at the time?"

"Walking home from a friend's loft," Madison said warily.

"Let me guess," Sam sat down. "Not too far from Hunter's Point?"

She nodded.

Sam took us back to the other room, closing the door.

"The same place where those other murders happened. I'm telling you, it's a werewolf's hunting grounds."

"Maybe," Dean conceded.

"But that doesn't mean it's gonna be out there tonight."

"It's the right time of the lunar cycle," I added.

Sam looked at me gratefully, and I tried my best to smile at him.

I tried not to think of how many memories this case was dredging up.

"Hey, you're forgetting something," Dean leant against the door.

"Maddie's probably gonna turn soon, all right? We can't just let her take off to an all-you-can-eat buffet."

"I'll stay with her," Sam said.

"And if she busts loose?" Dean crossed his arms.

No response.

"Sam!"

"I'll do it," Sam muttered.

"Sam."

"I'll shoot her, all right?" Sam snapped.

There was a long pause.

"Fine," Dean set his jaw.

He pulled me along.

"Come on, Bambi."

~Supernatural~

We chased after the werewolf, and the blood seemed to sing in my veins as it dragged a woman across the pavement.

"Hey!"

Dean shot him in the heart with the silver bullet.

It looked up, and we froze.

It was Madison's neighbor, Glen.

The woman stood up and threw us a terrified glance before running away.

"Hey, don't mention it!" Dean called after her.

We crouched down next to Glen, who coughed up blood.

Slowly, his fangs retracted.

"What happened?" Glen choked. "Where am I? Help me."

"All right, easy, Glen," Dean said levelly. "Just take it easy."

We watched as he died, his eyes glazing over.

I gently pulled his eyelids shut.

"Bye, Glen," I whispered.

…

We sat outside Madison's building in the Impala.

"It was sort of sad, really," Dean huffed.

"Glen had no clue what was going on. Hey, why do you think he turned Madison instead of killing her in the first place?"

"I don't know," Sam frowned.

"I mean, he kind of seemed to have a thing for her."

"Huh."

Dean glanced at Sam.

"So."

"So what?" Sam cocked an eyebrow.

"Speaking of Madison…."

"Oh, whatever," Sam said, flushing.

I hid my smile.

"Don't 'whatever' me, man, you liked her. Maybe, uh-"

"Dean, she thought I was a stark-raving lunatic," Sam glared at him.

"You saved her life," Dean pointed out.

"Yeah, but she doesn't know that," Sam retorted.

Madison appeared at the window.

"You know, for a stake-out, your car's a bit conspicuous. What are you still doing here?"

"Honestly?" Dean looked up at her.

"We're pretty sure you're not gonna turn tonight, but we've gotta be a hundred percent, so….. you know, we're lurking."

"I know this sounds crazy," Sam smiled sheepishly.

"Sure does. Well, if we're gonna wait it out… we might as well do it together."

We followed her inside.

"Well, it looks like we've got ourselves a few hours to kill," Dean grinned.

"Poker, anyone?"

…

We watched as the sun sank in the sky.

Dean laid his gun on the table.

Sam and Madison watched him from the couch.

"Oh, no, you guys talk," Dean said.

I curled into a ball on the free sofa, putting my head in my hands.

It was getting even more difficult to block everything out.

Surprisingly, Dean joined me.

I blinked at him.

He cleared his throat.

"Just another couple hours, Bambi, then we can go."

I smiled at him uncertainly.

"Thanks, Dean."

"Yeah, don't mention it," Dean said gruffly.

I breathed out in relief as the sun came up in the sky.

"Does…." Madison swallowed. "Does this mean it worked?"

Sam exhaled heavily.

"Yeah. I think so."

"Oh, God, thank you!" Madison hugged Sam hard.

"Thank you so much."

Dean coughed, and they pulled apart.

"You, too, Dean, thank you."

"Aw, don't mention it," He paused awkwardly.

Dean grabbed my arm, waggling his eyebrows at Sam suggestively.

"So, uh, we're just gonna head back to the hotel…. kid's probably tired."

"I-"

Dean cut me off with a glower, pulling me out the door.

He pumped his fist in the air as we left.

~Supernatural~

I sat on my bed, praying for sleep to come.

It didn't.

I wouldn't get any respite.

I raised my head as the sound of running footsteps came down the corridor.

Someone pounded on the door.

Dean opened it warily to a frantic Sam.

"She turned," Sam said breathlessly.

"What?"

"I couldn't grab her in time."

Dean's mouth thinned into a straight line.

"We'll find her, Sammy."

…

I leaned against the Impala as Sam paced the floor.

"I already called Bobby. He doesn't know anything. Except he knew severing the bloodline wouldn't work. That's everyone. They all say it's impossible to reverse it."

"How come she didn't turn when we were with her?"

"Dean—"

"So, what, you put her to bed and then she wolfed out?" Dean swore.

"Maybe she's gotta be asleep to turn."

"What the hell does it matter, Dean?" Sam kicked at the pavement.

"Look, we've gotta find some way to help her, some legend we missed or something."

"If there was, don't you think someone we know would've known it?" Dean returned.

"Well, then, we have to look harder until we find something."

"Sammy," Dean's tone was tired.

"I don't think we've got a choice here anymore."

"What?"

Dean sighed.

"I hate to say it. She's a sweet girl, but part of her is-"

"Evil?" Sam scowled.

"Yeah."

"Yeah, that's what they say about me, Dean," Sam fumed.

"So, me you won't kill, but her you're just gonna blow away?"

Before Dean could answer, Sam's phone rang.

"Madison?"

Sam wheeled around.

"Where are you?"

"All right, hold on, Maddie, we're coming to get you, just stay where you are."

~Supernatural~

We sat in Madison's apartment.

I couldn't tear my eyes from the gun on the table.

"I don't remember anything," Madison's voice quavered.

"I probably killed someone last night, didn't I?"

"There's no way to know yet," Dean said cautiously.

"Is there something else we can try to make it go away?"

She turned wide, pleading eyes to us, and I closed my eyes.

This was getting to be too much.

I wasn't sure how much longer I could hold my thoughts at bay.

"We'll find something," Sam said.

"I mean, there's gotta be some answer, somewhere."

"That's not entirely true."

Sam shot Dean an angry look.

"Madison, you deserve to know," Dean ignored Sam.

"We've scoured every source. There's just no cure."

Madison turned to Sam.

"Is he right?"

Sam turned away, blinking furiously.

"I mean, we could lock you up at night, but….." Dean paused.

"When you bust out, and some night you will, someone else dies. I'm sorry. I am."

The tears seeped out of her eyes.

"So, I guess that's all there is to it, then."

"Stop it," Sam spun around. "Don't talk like that."

"Sam, I don't wanna hurt anyone else," Madison stood up.

"I don't wanna hurt you."

She grabbed the gun and brought it to him.

"Put that down."

"I can't do it myself," She swiped at her tears. "I need you to help me."

"Madison, no."

"Sam…" She shuddered. "I'm a monster."

"You don't have to be," Sam shook his head fervently.

"We can find a way, all right? I can. I'm gonna save you."

Madison cried harder.

"You tried. I know you tried. But this is all there is left. Help me, Sam. I want you to do it. I want it to be you."

"I can't," Sam choked out.

"I don't wanna die," Madison's voice trembled. "I don't."

"But I can't live like this. This is the way you can save me. Please. I'm asking you to save me."

Sam jerked his head away.

Dean walked over to them, carefully taking the gun from Madison.

We followed Sam to another room.

I wrapped an arm around him as he cried.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered.

Dean looked at us.

"Sam. I'm sorry."

"No, you're right," Sam said thickly. "She's right."

"Sammy, I got this," Dean looked at him worriedly.

I looked from side to side.

I had to do this.

I couldn't let Sam go the way I had.

I'd promised to take care of him.

"No."

They spun over to me.

I picked up the gun, shaking.

"I'll do it."

"No!" Dean and Sam said at the same time.

Dean knocked it out of my hand.

"Over my dead body, Odette."

Sam looked at me.

"I can't ask you to do this, Odette. I've got to do it. She wanted me to."

Sam picked up the gun.


	26. Love's A Loaded Gun

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Chapter name borrowed from Alice Cooper.**

**Alice, I could hug you for the title of this song!**

**Lyrics borrowed from Juvenescent Beat's 'It's Not About The Money, It's About The Glory'.**

**It's here, people! I'm so happy!**

_And we swam so hard, but the current pulled us under,_

_And it swept us into the fury of the tide,_

_And we reached so far, but our arms were torn asunder._

_And we grabbed our hearts whose beating came like thunder_

_And we could not win; we were so resigned to die,_

_And we swam apart; there I was left to wonder._

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX- LOVE'S A LOADED GUN

"Sam, you don't have to do this," Dean held out his hand for the gun.

"I do, Dean," Sam wiped at the tear tracks on his cheek.

"She asked me to."

The gun shook in his grasp.

"Just…. just wait here, okay?"

Sam walked out the room.

As soon as he went, Dean allowed a tear to roll down his own cheek.

I stood close to him, letting my own fall.

I couldn't block any of it now.

We flinched at the sound of a gunshot in the other room.

~Supernatural~

Sam, ashen-faced and shivering, burrowed into his bed face-first.

He did not even notice Castiel.

"Cas," I muttered in relief.

He inclined his head at me, as if he knew what I needed to say.

I closed my eyes.

I'd denied everything long enough.

"Dean, Cas, Sam," I managed to choke out.

"There's something I need to tell you."

Sam, scrutinizing my expression, sat up in bed.

Dean narrowed his eyes at me.

Only Castiel remained impassive, as usual.

"It's gone on long enough."

I sat next to Sam, and he squeezed my shoulder, looking at me worriedly.

"I know you're curious," I shifted my gaze to Dean.

"I know you're suspicious. I think I owe the three of you an explanation."

Sam glanced at me.

"Odette, if this is-"

I interrupted him.

"No, Sam. If I can't trust you guys, I can't trust anybody."

I finally met their gazes.

"It's time I told you. Everything."

~Supernatural~

I hugged the photo album to my chest as I met three pairs of eyes.

"My dad is Matt Slessor," I whispered.

"He's the one who bought the haunted painting the last time we were here."

Dean slowly sat beside me, and Castiel moved forward.

I curled a finger around the cover, easing out a photo.

I set it down.

"That's my mom. Alana Slessor."

Sam put an arm around me as he stared at it.

"She's beautiful," Dean said gruffly.

I attempted a smile, but I was conscious of the tears already in my eyes.

I held it in front of me.

"You know," I blinked harder.

"I used to think my mom was the prettiest woman on the planet. Sometimes, she'd go outside, and if you looked hard enough, her hair seemed almost red in the sunlight. I used to be so proud I had the same eyes."

I swallowed, steeling myself.

"She'd sing, and even the birds would stop to listen."

A tear trickled down my cheek.

"That was the happiest time of my life," I hung my head.

"She died when I was nine."

Sam hugged me harder as I looked down.

"Gas leak. I was there. She told me to run, to leave her behind and get help."

I held Sam's hand in mine as I forced myself to continue.

"By the time I did, she was dead."

I smiled wryly.

"Six months later, Dad married someone else."

I looked at their expressions, spreading out my hands.

"Don't get me wrong, Dad loved Mom. The code on my house," I reminded Dean.

"It was the date of my mother's birthday. That's how I was able to open it."

I curled into a ball.

"He couldn't deal. He needed a distraction. So Dad found someone else."

Dean growled.

"What a-"

Sam cut him off with a glare.

"So I had to take care of my brother alone," I murmured.

"He was seven when Mom died."

I pulled out another photo, suppressing my tears at the sight of his curly blond hair and innocent brown eyes.

Dean tugged it from my hand.

"What's his name?"

"Sam."

The three of them started.

I smiled tremulously.

"We used to call him Sammy, too."

Dean looked at me almost as if he understood.

"Used to?"

I hung my head.

"I loved him more than Dad, so much more. I was willing to do anything for him."

I half-laughed, half-sobbed.

"I still remember the very first time he spoke. He looked up at me, and said my name. Odette. That was his first word."

Sam put both his arms around me as I shook silently.

"Sammy was the best little brother anyone could ever have. He cried when I cried, even when he was too little to know the reason. As long as I had him, things were at least a bit stable."

"But it was hard without Mom. Dad was getting distant, we never saw him anymore. Sam was afraid. He'd have nightmares every night. I tried my best to stop them, but how much could I do? I used to have nightmares myself. Sometimes I couldn't even get out of the house, couldn't talk, couldn't eat. I wasn't dealing. I _couldn't_ deal. "

I rested my head against Sam's shoulder.

"There were times when I didn't know what to do anymore. Times when I couldn't think straight, I was going crazy missing Mom so much. Times when I wanted to lie down and die."

"It was my fault," I added.

"I let Sam go out in the rain. He'd always loved it."

I bit my lip hard enough to draw blood.

"He got a pretty bad case of pneumonia," My voice trembled.

Dean's eyes flashed to mine.

He already knew.

But I said it anyway.

"A week," I buried my head in Sam's chest.

"I had to watch him die, bit by bit, for a week, and there was nothing I could do about it."

Then I started sobbing in earnest, and Sam rocked me back and forth on his lap as if I were five, not fifteen.

"It wasn't your fault," Castiel said unexpectedly.

"I've told you that so many times."

I scrubbed at my face.

"I'm not finished yet, Cas."

Dean huffed.

I hitched in a breath.

"Dad was…" I flinched.

"He got completely closed off, just worked all day long. Sometimes all night. Got into drugs, smoking, everything. I tried. I tried so hard to help him, but it never worked."

I hunched in on myself.

"I think he blamed me for surviving. Mom was gone, Sam was gone. I was the only one left."

"Truthfully?" I raised my head. "I blamed myself too."

"Dad started drinking. He just wanted to forget."

I absently traced the thin scar on my elbow.

Dean caught my arm.

"Did he do that?"

I pulled it away at once.

My face was answer enough for them.

"That sick son of a bitch!" Dean cursed, latching onto my arm.

Something like anger flashed in Castiel's eyes.

Sam held me tightly, growling under his breath.

"How?"

"Um," I looked down. "Beer bottle. It was only one time, I-"

"I'll kill him," Dean fumed. "I'll do it now!"

"No!"

My outburst surprised them into silence.

"Please, he's still my dad. You can't."

Dean stared at my face.

My tears still hadn't dried.

"Fine, Bambi. Just this once."

Sam squeezed my shoulder.

"Anything else, Odette?"

I froze.

This was it.

If I told them….. they would hate me, I was sure of it.

But I couldn't continue lying to them like this.

_I'm so scared. I don't want to do this_.

Castiel looked my way, and blinked once, as if to reassure me.

_Thanks, Cas_.

I popped open the locket and stared through wet eyes at his picture.

I unhooked it, and it glinted in my hand.

They were waiting.

"Do you remember Sarah's brother, Sam?"

Sam frowned at the mention of her.

"Yeah, sure, the one who got shot?"

My nails cut into my palm.

"I'm the one who shot him."

~Supernatural~

Dean sent the table lamp flying through the air.

"I knew it! I knew something like this was gonna happen!"

I flinched back from the anger in his eyes.

Sam was almost worse.

He looked at me with pain-filled eyes.

"How could you do something like that, Odette?"

_How could I indeed? How could I murder my best friend, my family, my…._ _everything?_

The thought was cut off, as Dean's curses grew louder.

"Let her speak!"

Castiel's voice whipped through the air, instantly calling for silence.

He crouched down in front of me, coaxing me to look up at him.

"Odette. Tell me."

So I did.

I closed my eyes so as not to see the accusation in their eyes.

Accusation I deserved.

"I met Jared when I was two," I whispered, finally opening my eyes.

"We lived next door to each other, and my ball fell in his garden one day, he brought it over to my place. He was half-Spanish, like me, and my parents liked his family."

I looked away.

"The rest, as we say, was history. We were best friends, inseparable. We did everything together."

I curled in tighter around myself.

"Jared was the only thing keeping me together after Mom died. Without him, I couldn't have taken care of Sam the way I did. And when my brother died…."

I choked on my own words.

"I would have fallen apart without him. Jared was everything. He came first, before anything and anyone."

Dean scowled at me.

"Then how-"

"Let her finish," Castiel said abruptly.

"Things changed when I was twelve," I clutched the bedspread harder.

"I'd always known I'd loved Jared, and I knew he loved me, but this was different."

I looked up sadly at Dean's skeptical snort.

"I know what you're thinking, Dean," I lowered my head.

"But what would you know of love, when all you do is pick up women whose faces you don't even remember the next week? Don't you think eleven years were enough to know?"

My cheeks were wet again.

Dean was silent.

"We were probably too young."

I laughed bitterly.

"Hell, we _were_ too young. But we didn't care. Jared was the one good thing in my life. When everything was collapsing around me, Jared was the one constant that I thought would always stay."

I grasped the locket in my hand.

"You know, if you asked me whether he was handsome or smart or witty, I couldn't tell you. He was just Jared. That was all. That was enough."

The tears were falling fast now, and I didn't even try to control them.

"Life was difficult. We weren't happy, but we were getting there. And then everything fell apart. Again."

My palms were bleeding; I'd pressed my nails in so hard.

"I was thirteen. We were going to the park, and something…. took Jared."

Dean and Sam stiffened.

"Took?" Sam echoed.

"Yeah." I nodded.

"This man. He was tall and dark, and he grabbed Jared. I tried to get him, but he knocked me aside. There was something in his eyes….. something…. not human."

I closed my eyes, but it did nothing to stop the tears seeping out.

"He made me watch," I trembled.

"He… he mixed his blood with Jared's and….."

I couldn't continue.

I didn't need to hear the triple inhalations of breath to know that they slowly understood.

But I'd spoken too much.

I couldn't stop now.

"Jared went missing. The police went crazy trying to find him. And then the murders started happening."

I shuddered, remembering those weeks.

"Dozens of people. Sucked dry of blood. It got so bad I had to carry a gun with me wherever I went."

Sam's eyes were widening in horror now.

"I was walking through an alleyway when I saw him. Jared. He….. he was drinking a little girl's blood."

Dean inhaled sharply.

Castiel's eyes were fixed on me now, and I tried to calm myself by looking at him.

"I ran all the way home. I didn't tell the cops, how could I? I didn't want to believe it was Jared. I _couldn't_ believe it was Jared."

I put my head in my hands.

"A week later Jared was in my room. He told me he was a monster. That he couldn't control himself. He begged me to kill him."

Sam's eyes swiveled to mine.

"Odette….."

"At first I refused. Killing him would be like killing myself. But people were dying, and I couldn't just sit by. Couldn't stand the guilt."

My lips trembled.

"So I found him out. Same alleyway. I wasn't strong enough to do it, but he pleaded with me to save him. So I….."

The bed shook with my shudders.

"So I shot him in the head. I killed him. I killed the best thing that had ever happened to me. "

I sunk to the floor, and let myself weep, finally.

I had nothing more to say.

Sam picked me up gently, wrapping his arms around me in a fierce hug.

"God, Odette, I'm so sorry…."

I buried my head in his chest.

"Kid?"

I looked up warily at Dean.

He ruffled my hair hesitantly.

"I'm sorry, Bambi, I should've known."

He shifted uncomfortably.

"It's okay, Dean. It's my fault, anyway."

Dean grabbed my forearm.

"No it wasn't. You did the right thing."

That only made me cry harder.

"Dean, I shot the one person I loved in the head. How in the hell is that the right thing?"

He had no answer for me.

Castiel bent down in front of me.

He hooked a finger under my chin, pulling my head up.

I blinked at him, confused.

"Listen to me, Odette," Castiel ordered.

"It wasn't your fault. Stop feeling guilty. You did what you had to do."

I hung my head, wishing I could believe him.

"Look at me."

I raised my head.

"How many more people would have died if you hadn't done it?" Castiel demanded.

"Your soul is pure, Odette. The purest, brightest soul I've ever seen."

Sam hugged me closer to him.

"None of us blame you, Odette. You shouldn't be guilty."

He looked harder at me.

"That's why you wanted to shoot Madison, wasn't it?"

I nodded mutely.

Sam shook his head.

"How did you…"

"Survive?" I laughed humorlessly.

"Hardly, Sam. I was afraid I was going insane. I couldn't block out the memories, they'd play out again and again till it was madness in my head. The time when I twisted my ankle and Jared had to carry me home, the day he walked across town to get me my birthday present, the cat Jared gave to me, how we both caught colds dancing in the rain, each and every moment I spent with him. And once they finished, it started again in a vicious, never-ending loop."

"I didn't survive, Sam. I was weak. I gave up."

I looked at the faint line on my wrist.

Dean saw it too, snatching away my hand.

"You…."

I couldn't meet his eyes.

"Yes, Dean. I tried to kill myself. There wasn't any point living anymore. Not without him."

Sam's hold on me tightened reflexively.

"Sarah found me in time, sent me to the hospital. Otherwise it would've worked. I was desperate. Without Jared, I was nothing. He'd been the only think keeping me together. I had to leave. So I got my emancipation and fled to Maine. The rest you know."

"Damn it, kid," Dean sighed, thumbing away the tears on my face.

"I was so close to giving up again," I whispered.

"What changed your mind?" Sam looked down at me.

"This."

I pulled out the letter from my pocket, unfolding it so they could see.

Sam whispered a "Sorry," into my head as he finished reading it.

Dean swore under his breath.

"That's what you meant by what you said to Meg, wasn't it?"

I nodded.

"It's the least I could do."

Castiel finished last.

"I would have liked to meet him."

That was it.

I couldn't control my tears any longer.

I sobbed so hard I frightened Sam, even alarmed Dean.

Sam's eyes were pained as he rubbed my back soothingly.

I could tell he was thinking of Madison.

"Does it always hurt this much?" Sam murmured almost inaudibly.

I knew what he meant, and I longed to give him a different answer.

"Always."

~Supernatural~

I walked through the moonlit gravel path, steeling myself for what I had to do.

I needed closure.

Hardly had I laid the flowers on their graves when I sensed him behind me.

"Hey, Cas."

My voice was raspy, still choked and raw.

He moved to stand with me.

"Dean and Sam are looking for you."

I nodded, unsurprised.

"What did you tell them, Cas?"

He hesitated.

"I told them…. you needed to pay your respects."

I glanced up at him as I knelt down.

"How do you know me so well, Cas?"

He sank down to the ground with me.

"It's not that hard, Odette."

Castiel paused.

"Do you want me to leave?"

"No," I surprised even myself. "Stay. I think it could help."

"Cas?"

"Yes."

I didn't know why I was even telling him all this.

"My mom was wearing orange the day she died. I've never been able to wear it ever again. I can't even look at an orange without feeling sick."

I shivered in the cold night air.

"When I was upset or scared, she'd make me hot chocolate with cinnamon. It always helped. It's stupid, but I keep drinking it, because it makes me feel closer to her somehow."

Castiel gazed at me.

"It's not stupid."

I wrapped my arms around my knees, and Castiel looked at my tattered bracelet.

"Sam made it for me," I smiled thinly. "When he was four. To protect me, he said."

My smile faltered as I looked at the last grave.

"Jared gave me the locket. I still know what he'd written on the side. 'So you'll always remember me'."

I breathed out shakily.

"As if I could ever forget."

There was nothing I could say about my father.

"Odette."

I turned my head to Cas' side.

"I'm sorry about what you've had to go through."

It was awkward and stilted, but I knew it was sincere.

"Cas? Will you promise me something?"

He tilted his head curiously.

"What?"

I caught onto his sleeve.

"One way or another, everyone leaves me, Castiel. Promise me you'll stay."

_Please_.

"I promise."

"Thanks, Cas."

His promise filled me with the courage to say what I'd come here for.

"Mom." I was proud that my voice remained steady.

"I'm so sorry I couldn't save you. That we couldn't get there in time. I wish you could see me now. I tried my best with Dad, I tried so hard, Mom, believe me, I tried."

The words stuck in my throat.

"But I couldn't, Mom. I'm sorry."

Castiel's steady presence helped me some.

I twisted the bracelet on my arm.

"Sammy. My baby brother. I'm so, so sorry I couldn't protect you, _mijo_. I hope you're happy, wherever you are. I love you, Sam. You're the best little brother ever. I'd give anything to have you back. Please forgive me."

I swallowed as I faced the last grave.

"Jared. I'm trying, Jared. I'm trying so hard. I promise, I'll keep going. I won't give up. I love you. Help me, please. Help me get some hope."

Had it been Sam, or even Dean with me, I would not have hesitated to hug them.

But since it was Cas, I settled myself for resting my head against his knee.

He started once, then tentatively placed a feather-light hand on my shoulder for a second.

So I knelt by the graves of my family with an angel by my side, and wept.


	27. Song Of The Maenad

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Yeah, so I'm switching Hollywood Babylon with one of my own cases I thought up the other day.**

**You know, a lot of you have been asking me about how Jared looks, because so far all you guys know that his eyes are caramel brown. I'll leave it up to you to imagine, and if you guys actually get it right, I'll tell you!**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

CHAPTER TWENTY- SEVEN- SONG OF THE MAENAD

Worst. Case. Ever.

You must be wondering why I sound like a bratty teenager, so let's start at the beginning.

It all began when Pretty Boy zapped us halfway across America for a hunt.

And what were we hunting?

A maenad.

A frigging _maenad_.

And this wasn't any pretty, Maryann- from- True-Blood maenad, either.

(Was nothing sacred?)

Oh no, this was an ugly, flesh-eating monster.

And, uh, the whole eating men and children thing?

Myth.

Maenads, apparently, liked chowing down on girls.

_Virgin_ girls, specifically.

Bit brutal, really, considering they're kinda girls themselves.

It wasn't their fault, technically.

Something was converting the women in town to violently PMS'ing, vicious creatures.

The remaining girls were food.

Good times.

The transformation itself, according to Castiel (and what was the whole deal with Bambi calling him Cas, anyway?) was excruciatingly painful.

And slow.

Which was how Bambi ended up pitching a fit.

I almost told Angel Boy to take care of it himself.

Both of them needed a break.

After the whole Madison business, and Odette finally telling us the truth, we needed some down time.

Sam was spacing out, and the kid looked even skinnier than usual, if that was possible.

But they refused, and that was how we ended up with a terrified girl tied to a chair.

"Please," She whimpered. "Just let me go. This isn't my fault!"

"I'm sorry."

I was, but I didn't have a choice.

The girl was turning, and there was nothing we could do to save her.

Sam didn't even wince, and that was when I knew exactly how bad it was, because Sam always had a problem with this sort of thing.

I raised my gold dagger (angelic intel, never thought I'd live to see the day) and was about to cut her head off when Odette caught my arm.

"What?" I snapped.

"You can't kill her," Bambi pleaded, eyes bigger than ever.

"She's innocent, she doesn't deserve this!"

I sighed, trying to be patient.

"Nobody deserves this, kid, but I got no choice."

"But-"

I lost it, then.

Big mistake.

"Shut up, Odette! You think life is a fairy tale, and the choices you're gonna make are always gonna be easy, is that it?"

"That girl-" I jabbed a finger at her, at _it_.

"Has to die, and you damn well know it!"

I should have stopped right there, but of course, I didn't.

"What's it to you, anyway?" I sneered.

"Just because you shot your boyfriend in the head doesn't mean we stop doing what's right!"

I really, really could've used a brain-to-mouth filter right about then.

The three of us froze.

You could've heard a pin drop in the room.

Odette flinched.

I opened my mouth to apologize, but the hurt on her face shut me up.

What had I said?

I felt like the biggest jerk in existence.

"If…. if that's what you think," Bambi blinked furiously, wiping her cheek.

She ran out the door.

The next thing I knew, I got a fist to the face by a livid Sam.

"What the hell was that for?" I yelled, rubbing my jaw.

He looked close to hitting me again.

"_For?_"

"How could you say that to her?"

I looked away guiltily, but spoke, nonetheless.

"I can't mollycoddle her, Sam, she can't just get teary-eyed over every person we can't save!"

Sam roughly shoved me.

"She's fifteen, Dean, how do you expect her to react? Especially after…"

After Jared.

"If you hurt her, I swear I will break your face, Dean, brother or no."

I made a mental note not to mess with Sam when he was in his mother hen mode.

But he was right.

I was a fool for saying that to sweet, innocent Bambi.

"She….." I swallowed. "She knows I didn't mean any of that, right, Sammy?"

Sam glared at me.

"You idiot. Odette's not me, Dean, she doesn't know that you don't mean half the things you say."

I jumped (it was a completely manly jump, if you were curious) as _he_ appeared behind me.

"You shouldn't have said that," Castiel looked at me disapprovingly.

I scowled at him.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious."

I turned away from him.

"But she'll understand when she comes back, right, Sam? When I apologize to her?"

Castiel just looked at me sadly, as if I'd kicked his grandmother or something.

"What?" I was getting worried.

And just like that, Sam stopped glaring at me, flopping down on the bed.

"Dean, has it ever occurred to you that Odette might not want to come back?"

~Supernatural~

She was coming back.

She had to.

I was in a bad mood, pacing the floor restlessly.

I'd just made a fifteen-year-old girl cry.

Great.

Just great.

Sam had returned to glowering at me.

I gave him five minutes before he started punching me again.

I called Odette for the fifth time in two hours.

It went straight to voicemail.

"Odette. I'm sorry, I really am. I shouldn't have said any of that. Just call me. Cas and Sam want you back. I want you back. Just….. come home, Bambi."

No answer.

Two more hours passed, and I cursed.

I hadn't wanted to admit it before, but Bambi like one of those annoying sisters you never wanted, but couldn't help loving anyway.

I'd pushed her away from the beginning, and when she'd finally trusted us enough to tell us everything, I'd thrown it back in her face as soon as I got a chance.

I was panicking, and Dean Winchester does not panic.

Sam was working himself up into a fit, and Odette didn't even pick up the phone when he called.

Cas couldn't find her, which was a majorly bad sign.

I dialed her again.

"It's no use," Cas tossed away my phone. "You have to find her."

I shot him a dirty look, but got up nevertheless.

Sam followed me.

I had a bad feeling about this.

~Supernatural~

"Damn it, where are you, Bambi?" I growled, looking for the third time down the street.

She wasn't stupid.

Angry or not, Odette was smart enough to come back.

I froze as I called her again, craning my head to see in the dark alleyway.

"Sam," I called, and he turned around, hearing it too.

"Oh, no," He breathed out.

That about summed it up.

_No, no, no, no_, I thought, flipping on my flashlight.

I stepped down the alleyway, disbelieving.

It couldn't be Odette's phone I heard ringing.

All doubts were cleared from my mind when I saw Odette's BlackBerry on the cement.

What had I done?

~Supernatural~

"They're trying to summon their god, Dionysus," Castiel led us through the warehouse silently.

"They needed one last sacrifice, the purest soul they could find," Castiel said grimly.

And Odette fit the bill.

Sam was white and ashen-faced.

"If anything happens to her….."

I closed my eyes.

This was my entire fault.

We crouched down, stealthily moving forward.

I could see the maenad now.

Then Odette screamed in pain, and I threw caution to the winds and ran out.

We reached just in time to see the maenad plunge a knife into Odette's stomach.


	28. Ghost Of A Good Thing

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Chapter name borrowed from Dashboard Confessional.**

**Lyrics borrowed from Escape Club.**

_Because I'm on your side,_

_And I still care,_

_I may have died,_

_But I've gone nowhere._

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT- GHOST OF A GOOD THING

It was too late.

Even ad they ran forward, my vision flickered, spots dancing before my eyes.

My stomach was pulsing with waves of white-hot, vicious pain, and I retched up blood.

Cas was moving towards the maenad now, but it pulled me up by my hair, and I couldn't even cry out as it tugged on it.

I didn't need to feel the steel against my neck to know he wouldn't be able to move fast enough.

I was dying anyway; this would just shorten the process.

"Odette! No!"

I could hear them calling for me, but I didn't have the will to fight.

Not anymore.

What was the point?

Death seemed almost like mercy right now.

Castiel was almost there, but it would be over in a second.

At least it would be fast.

_Sorry, Cas_, I raised my head to look at him one last time.

_I don't think you can save me this time_.

I stared the monster in the face as the knife swung in a slow arc down to my neck.

"NO!" Three voices yelled in unison, but I was too far gone.

I felt the blade bite into my neck, and closed my eyes.

At that point, it was better than living anyway.

And then the maenad screamed.

Castiel hadn't moved a muscle.

What had once been a normal human girl was flung sideways by an invisible force.

She bounced off of the cold stone floor.

I blinked hazily, the air was collecting into something almost…. human.

But I could feel my strength ebbing away, slowly seeping out of my veins, and I slumped forward in my own blood.

Someone caught me gently as I fell, and I looked up tiredly, expecting to see Sam or Dean.

I froze as I stared at him, mouth falling open in shock.

"Jared?"

~Supernatural~

Cas, Dean and Sam stiffened as the ghost of the fourteen-year-old boy I loved propped me up carefully.

He smiled slightly, cupping my cheek in his hand.

"Hey_, chiquita_. It's been some time."

I blinked furiously, my vision was failing, but I couldn't stand not seeing his face.

I flung my arms around his neck, uncaring of the fact that it made my stomach flare in agony.

What did it matter?

I wasn't going to be breathing much longer.

"How…" I couldn't speak as the blood filled my mouth.

"Am I here?" Jared finished.

I dimly noticed Castiel stabbing the maenad with the dagger, but I didn't care.

Nothing mattered except the boy holding me together.

Jared huffed a laugh.

"How could I leave you here on your own?"

"Especially," Jared scowled at Dean. "Considering who you're with."

I wanted to defend Cas and Sam, at least, tell him they'd all saved my life more times than I could count, but I just didn't have the strength to speak.

I spat out more blood.

"You were supposed to go," I whispered, stupidly, insanely angry.

"Not stick around here just for me!"

Jared ignored me, walking away from the black altar.

"You know, they told me I'd be better off away from here," He said softly, holding my head back so I could breathe.

"But you were all I ever wanted. Why would my dying ever change that?"

Against his chest, the tears spilled over.

"I'm so sorry," I choked out.

"I love you, and I couldn't do anything to save you. I'm so sorry."

"You were supposed to stay with Sarah, grow up. You wanted to go to Harvard, and now…"

Nothing left but memories.

"Hey," Jared frowned.

"Listen to me. It wasn't your fault. It was never your fault. You did what you had to do."

I shook my head.

He sighed.

"I'd forgotten how stubborn you were. That's part of why I love you, of course," Jared's arm encircled my waist.

"But you have to stop it. Think about how many people I killed, Odette. I sucked them dry, I couldn't control myself. If you hadn't shot me, I'd have murdered more."

I could see the anguish in his eyes, and I touched his face with trembling fingers.

"It wasn't your fault," I echoed his words.

Again, he didn't listen.

"I kept my promise, Odette," Jared's eyes were heavy on mine.

"It's time you kept yours."

The tears mixed with my blood.

"It's too late, Jared, I'm going to die. What's the point, anyway?"

I laughed bitterly.

"What's the point of living when you're dead?"

Jared's finger ran across my lips.

"Ssh, you'll live. You're strong enough to go on without me."

He was wrong.

We'd almost reached them now.

Dean instantly reached out to take me, freezing as Jared glared at him.

He eyed Sam quizzically as he stepped forward, drawing me away.

Jared turned to Castiel.

"Can you heal her?"

Castiel nodded silently.

"What? No!"

Panic set in, and then I was clutching air as Jared let Cas catch me by my shoulders.

"Promise me you'll take care of her," Jared locked gazes with Castiel.

"I promise," Cas held his eyes, clamping a hand down on my neck, effectively stopping the bleeding.

"Jared!"

He smiled at me sadly.

"Your family's waiting. It's time you let me go, Odette."

Jared kissed me lightly once, and I struggled in Castiel's implacable hold as he stepped away from me.

"No!"

"Goodbye, Odette. Don't forget me."

The tears streamed down my face as the one boy, who even in death had managed to save me, disappeared from my life.

Again.

I screamed his name out into the night.

~Supernatural~

I could hear Castiel's calm voice in the other room as I huddled in my bed.

My stomach still hurt, though not as much as before.

Cas had seen to that.

"I've healed most of her injuries," He said.

"But the spell was powerful. She's going to need time to recover."

Time.

I had all the time in the world, and the one person who'd made it worthwhile was gone.

For good.

I stared at the blank wall, trying not to feel, not to think.

It didn't work.

I remembered Cas' inability to feel.

Must be nice.

Sam walked in, kissing the top of my head gently.

"Get some sleep," He whispered before leaving.

Sam always knew when I needed to be alone.

Dean, however, wasn't that perceptive.

We looked at each other in silence.

"_Just because you shot your boyfriend in the head doesn't mean we stop doing what's right!_"

"Kid, I'm so sor-"

That did it.

Anger flooded over me, instinctive and strong.

I vaulted off the bed, not caring that the room was spinning around me.

I shoved him back roughly.

Dean jerked in surprise.

"Save it, Dean," I spat out, pushing him away.

"I don't want anything from you."

A lie, but he didn't need to know that.

"I didn't mean-"

I resisted the urge to punch him in the face.

"You know what?" I tried to subtly hang onto the table for support.

"I'm done. I've been bending over backwards trying to be nice to you, but it's just not working, is it?"

I glowered at him, failing to keep my voice down.

"You're just an arrogant prick, Dean, and the only thing you know how to do is hurt people!"

I knew it was a low blow, but I was so angry I didn't care.

Dean let me yell at him, and that surprised me, but I continued anyway.

The words chafed in my still sore throat, but I forced them out.

"If you had even an ounce of respect for me, Dean, let alone anything else, you would never have said that!"

I banged the door in his face, collapsing against it in tears.

~Supernatural~

Days passed.

I thought I was ready to start on cases again, but Cas refused, and Sam was only too happy to go along with him.

I still hadn't talked to Dean, and tensions were running high.

I knew it was unfair to make Sam choose between his brother and me, but I wasn't ready yet.

I heard the door swing open, and sighed.

This was the third time he'd come to check.

"I'm fine, Sam, really."

He coughed quietly.

"I'm not Sam."

I obstinately kept my back to him.

"What do you want, Dean?" I asked tiredly. "Haven't you done enough?"

He sat down next to me heavily.

"I'm sorry, Bambi, I really am. I had no right to say that to you, it just-"

"Slipped out?" I finished bitterly.

Dean nodded to himself.

"Look, I know I've been a bit of a di-"

I snorted loudly, and Dean stopped, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"A huge jerk to you," Dean amended.

"And if you don't want anything to do with me, I guess I can't blame you. It just gets too much sometimes, you know?"

Dean shrugged.

"This life, constantly having to make choices where you have to kill innocent people, it gets to you, you know? I just wanted to set things straight."

I bit my lip.

The bedsprings squeaked as Dean got up.

"Right. Sorry, Odette."

"Wait!" I called out as he reached for the doorknob.

Dean turned around.

"I'm sorry, too," I paused. "I shouldn't have said what I did, either."

"So," I held out my arm. "Truce?"

Dean's hand closed around mine.

"Truce."

And then came the Dean I knew and loved.

"We're not going to have to hug or anything, are we?"

~Supernatural~

I clutched Jared's photo in my hand, tracing my fingers across his sunny, playful smile.

I knew I'd never see it again.

"He was right."

I spun around to stare at Cas.

"About what?" My voice cracked.

"You do have a family. Isn't that worth living for?"

I fought the impulse to look away as Cas gazed at me intensely.

I stared at his picture again.

"Why'd he have to die, Cas? Why'd I have to kill him?"

Castiel sounded a thousand years old as he answered me.

"Because it broke you, Odette. That's what they wanted all along."

He stayed with me as I buried my head in my hands and sobbed.

The tears dripped onto Jared's carefree face.


	29. I Don't Know Where I Stand

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Chapter name borrowed from Joni Mitchell.**

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE- I DON'T KNOW WHERE I STAND

This was bad.

_Really _bad.

I'd been catapulted into some wacky alternate reality by some goddamn djinn, and I had no way of getting to Sam (the real Sam), Odette, or even Cas.

I mean, wasn't it enough that the frigging FBI was chasing us?

Apparently not.

Might I mention that the other Odette creeped the hell out of me?

I mean, she wore skimpy shorts and had an unhealthy obsession with the color pink.

And she was with Jared, and so happy it was downright puke inducing.

Barely said anything, she was so caught up in filing her nails.

Nah, not a trace of my Bambi in there.

More than that, I was worried.

Bambi'd come with me to scope out the warehouse, and I'd been pulled in here, while the djinn was on the prowl.

I hoped she had the sense to go to Sam, or call Angel Boy.

Anyway, the professor was eying me oddly as I asked him about the djinn.

I didn't get it.

Why the hell was it tossing out freebies?

I mean, Mom alive, Sam and Jess getting married, me with Carmen, this was a bit too heavy on the ecstasy trip.

And the worst part?

I didn't want to leave.

This was almost perfect.

_Too _perfect.

If not for Sam being all bitchy, and Barbie Girl Odette, I'd have been happy here.

Hell, I was still happy here.

I mean, come on, who wouldn't be?

I had Mom.

But then I started watching the news while Carmen was out on her shift.

"And today marks the anniversary of the crash of United Britannia Flight 424," The reporter said blandly.

I froze.

"Indianapolis residents held a candlelight vigil in memory of the hundred people who lost their lives."

This couldn't be happening.

We'd stopped that plane from crashing.

Everything seemed to click into place.

The woman I kept seeing, why the djinn sent me here, everything.

~Supernatural~

I stood over his grave, gritting my teeth.

Researching had just confirmed what I already knew.

"All of them," I muttered. "Everyone you saved. Everyone Sammy and I saved. They're all dead. And there's this woman that keeps haunting me. I don't know why. I don't know what the connection is, not yet anyway. It's like my old life is coming after me or something. Like it doesn't want me to be happy."

I laughed mirthlessly.

"'Course, I know what you'd say- go hunt the djinn, it put you here, it can put you back. Your happiness for those people's lives, no contest. But why, Dad?"

I kicked the stone path, suddenly furious.

"Why is it my job to save these people? Why do I have to be some kind of hero?"

I swiped angrily at my cheek.

"What about us, huh? Mom's not supposed to live her life? Sammy can't get married? Odette can never have her family? Is that it?"

I rubbed at my eyes again.

"Why do we have to sacrifice everything, Dad?"

I didn't get any answer.

I hadn't expected one.

~Supernatural~

I clutched the silver knife in my hand.

I felt like a jerk stealing Mom's stuff, but it had to be done.

I stared at Sam's shadow against the window, and gunned the engine.

The passenger door opened just as the Impala started moving.

I glared at Sam.

"Get out of the car."

He ignored me.

"I'm going with you."

I grimaced.

"You're just gonna slow me down."

Sam scowled at me.

"Tough."

I leaned back in the seat.

"Why are you doing this anyway?"

Sam sighed.

"Because you're still my brother."

I opened my mouth to answer, when the door to the backseat opened.

"Forgetting someone, boys?'

I cursed.

There stood Odette, in all her fifteen-year-old glory, in hot pink shorts and a white tube top, popping up bubblegum.

Bubblegum.

And….. was that…. was that spray tan she had on?

I was an inch away from stuffing my head in a paper bag and blowing for all I was worth.

"No, we are not," I somehow managed to say.

She pouted (pouted!) at me.

"Yeah right, Dean. You're family, and whatever stupid thing you guys are gonna do, it's not gonna be alone."

She said this really fast, in a long, thick drawl.

My left eye twitched.

Odette flipped her head to one side.

"Couldn't it have waited, though? I was just about to dye my hair blonde."

I gaped at her.

She held out her hand so I could see her violently magenta fake nails.

"At least I got my manicure done."

I think I needed that paper bag now.

How could this be Bambi?

She raised an eyebrow at me, and I realized I'd said it out loud.

"What are you calling me Bambi for?"

"Shut up and get in the car," I growled.

She simpered at her reflection on the way in.

~Supernatural~

Odette shrieked as she saw the woman that'd been haunting me strung up on the wall.

She dived behind me, clutching at my jacket.

"We're gonna die!" She wailed. "I'm too pretty to die!"

"Shut up," I snapped, pushing her behind a barrel.

"You're not gonna die."

She hid her face in my shoulder as the djinn appeared behind the girl.

"Where's my dad?" She sobbed.

She looked up at the djinn.

"Don't."

She moved her feet away from it, crying even harder.

"Where's my dad?"

The djinn touched her face.

"Sleep."

Blue flared across her cheek as he stroked her.

The djinn's eyes glowed bright blue.

"Sleep."

The djinn went for the blood bag, drinking up her blood.

Odette whimpered behind me, and Sam coughed in disgust.

The djinn turned around right away.

By the time he reached our hiding place, we were gone.

~Supernatural~

I held the silver knife in my hands.

This was the only way to prove whether this was real.

Odette was batting at my hand, but I easily shook her off.

"You're going to kill yourself!" Sam yelled.

"Maybe," I pulled the knife inwards.

"WAIT!" Sam yelled.

Suddenly, Mom appeared, in the same nightgown she'd died in.

Behind Sam, Carmen appeared.

"Why'd you have to keep digging?" Sam asked bitterly.

Odette hung on to my arm.

"Why couldn't you have left well enough alone? You were happy," Odette murmured.

Mom came up to me.

"Put the knife down, honey."

"You're not real."

I didn't fight the tears.

"None of it is."

"It doesn't matter," Mom smiled. "It's still better than anything you had."

I shook my head.

"I'll die. The djinn'll….. drain the life out of me in a couple of days."

"But in here, with us," Mom stroked my face. "It'll feel like years."

I looked over to Sam, who nodded.

"I'm begging you, Dean, you'll be happy here. Drop the knife."

Odette cupped my cheek in her hand.

"Remember what you told me? That it got too much for you? You won't have to make those choices here, Dean. Get some rest."

I looked at them all one last time.

"I'm sorry," I whispered.

I stabbed myself in the heart.

"DEAN! DEAN!"

I came to with a gasp, eyes wheeling around to stare at Sam.

The real Sam.

I'd made it.

"Where's Odette?" I demanded as soon as he cut me down.

Sam stared at me.

"I thought she was with you, and then you didn't come back, and I had to look for-"

I cut off his babble.

"Sam."

He slowly turned to see where I was looking.

"Oh, no."

Odette was strung up with the blood bag, eyes half-lidded.

She wasn't breathing.


	30. Reality Bites

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Chapter name borrowed from a movie I saw long ago.**

**Lyrics borrowed from Gary Jule's 'Mad World.'**

**Alana's song to Odette belongs, of course, to Suzanne Collins.**

**Ah, both of them make me sniffle!**

_I find it kinda funny,_

_I find it kinda sad,_

_The dreams in which I'm dying,_

_Are the best I've ever had._

CHAPTER THIRTY- REALITY BITES

I let out a long, slow breath, staring at myself in the photo album.

I looked different.

My hair was shorter, my skin darker, but that was irrelevant.

I was staring at my twenty-four year old body.

The Odette I saw looked strong, dependable.

She looked happy.

And why wouldn't she be?

I glanced across to Jared, passed out on the couch, snoring lightly.

I ran a hand over his tousled hair.

Twenty-five, and unbelievably, miraculously, alive.

I flipped through the pages, and my family smiled out at me from the pictures.

Mom, eyes bright and green, Sammy, carefree and playful, tall and lanky, just like another Sam I knew.

I froze.

Sam.

Dean.

Cas.

Where were they?

Guilt washed over me.

They might be in danger, but here I was, living out a paradise the djinn had sent me to.

I remembered Dean, slumped on the floor, unconscious.

And I hadn't been able to warn Sam in time.

I stiffened as something glinted on my hand.

The album fell from my hand as I stared at my finger, at the slim golden band encircling it.

A wedding ring.

I was engaged.

~Supernatural~

I ran up the porch steps, ringing the bell frantically.

My mom ran out at once, eyes happy and clear.

"Odette!"

She wrapped her arms around me, and I breathed in the familiar scent of cinnamon and vanilla.

In that instant, I was five years old again, sipping hot chocolate and curling up against my mom after a particularly bad nightmare.

I stared at her heart-shaped face, at the almost-red curls of hair bouncing around it, at the faint wrinkles around her eyes that showed she'd lived a long, happy life.

She pulled away, glancing at me curiously.

"What are you doing out here? Where's Jared?"

My eyes instantly flashed down to the ring,

Mom didn't miss the direction of my gaze.

She smiled slyly.

"Wedding jitters?"

She pushed me inside our red-bricked, pretty house.

"Say no more, _mija_. Come on in."

I curled up on the couch, watching as Mom sat down beside me, pressing a cup of hot chocolate into my hand.

Tears sprung to my eyes at the familiarity of it.

Mom sat beside me, patting my cheek.

"You love Jared, don't you?"

I swallowed, fighting back my tears.

"More than anything, Mom," I whispered.

She laughed.

"And heaven knows he's smitten with you, Odette. Everything's going to be fine, honey."

And here, with my family around me, I could believe it.

She smiled, brushing my hair slowly.

"You know how I knew?"

I stared at her in silence.

"You were six, I can remember so clearly," Mom's eyes unfocused.

"You and Jared were on the swings, and you were going so high, and I was getting worried. You fell, scraped your knee, and started crying."

Mom looked at me, her eyes shining brightly.

"And I ran forward to help you, but Jared got there first."

Her eyes glimmered with tears.

"He picked you up, and you stopped crying at once. Jared smiled at you, and said: 'Don't cry, Odette, I'll always be here to protect you.'"

_I'll always be here to protect you_.

"I remember that," I choked out.

Mom smiled, eyes wet.

"And I knew, from that moment on, that as long as Jared was with you, nothing could go wrong."

The tears spilled out of my eyes, then, and I sobbed into her shoulder.

She shushed me, rocking me back and forth.

I rested my head against hers.

"Will you sing me that song?" I whispered.

She raised an eyebrow.

"The lullaby," I murmured. "The one you always sang when I got nightmares and couldn't sleep."

Mom looked at me, worried.

"Are you sure you're all right, _mija?_"

"Yeah," I nodded jerkily. "Just sing it, please."

She stared at me once, then began to sing.

I closed my eyes as her voice rang out, high and clear and sweet, the notes ringing out pure and true.

"_Deep in the meadow, hidden far away,_

_A cloak of leaves, a moonbeam ray,_

_Forget your woes and let your troubles lay,_

_And when again it's morning, they'll wash away,_

_Here it's safe, here it's warm,_

_Here the daisies guard you from every harm,_

_Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true,_

_Here is the place where I love you_."

I let a tear trickle down my cheek as she lulled me to sleep.

After six long years, I'd fallen asleep in my mother's arms.

~Supernatural~

"Wake up, sleepyhead!"

I moaned, pressing my face against the upholstery of the couch.

I knew that voice, but it'd been high and reedy once, not deep and self-assured.

"Odette…."

I rubbed at my eyes, and looked up to a familiar mop of honey blonde curls.

"Sammy!"

I had him in a vice-like grip in an instant.

"Whoa, there!" He laughed, placing a hand in my hair.

I pulled back to look at him, drinking in the sight.

His face was tanned and healthy, this wasn't the little boy I'd taken care of.

No, this was the broad-shouldered, strong Sam that should've been.

That would've been.

I was crying again, wrapping my arms around him.

"Easy there, Odette," Sam chuckled. "Save the waterworks for the wedding."

I smiled tremulously.

"Speaking of," He cocked an eyebrow.

"You scared the hell out of Jared with your little disappearing act last night."

I flushed.

"Where is she?" I heard him yell, and Sam grinned at me.

"See?"

I heard the footsteps coming closer.

"I'll give you two a moment," Sam quickly kissed my cheek, inconspicuously closing the door behind him.

Jared glared at me.

"Do you have any idea how worried I was?"

"Sorry," I wound my arms around him.

Home.

"Just needed to see Mom."

He relaxed against me, kissing me gently on the mouth.

"Just don't do that again."

"I won't," I said against his chest. "I promise."

I curled up against Jared, flicking on the news.

"And this is the sixth death reported in Jericho, on the same stretch of highway….."

The remote fell out of my hand.

No.

This couldn't be happening.

Couldn't I even have this much?

~Supernatural~

I drove all the way to Illinois, stepping down on the accelerator.

I'd shut my phone, anticipating the calls I knew they'd make.

I staved off the guilt.

They weren't real.

It didn't make it any less.

All the people we'd saved.

Dead.

Gone.

I ran into the warehouse, searching for the djinn.

I remembered the blood bags I'd seen, the bodies hung up.

I understood everything now.

Even why he'd sent me here in the first place.

I knew what I had to do.

I picked up the knife hanging on the wall, steeling myself to plunge it into my chest.

"NO! STOP!"

And suddenly Jared was in front of me, thirteen year old Jared with the bullet hole in his forehead.

"Don't!"

"Put it away, honey," Mom looked at me aggrievedly, wearing the orange top she'd worn the day she died.

"Don't do this," Sam lisped, his face white and pale, once again nine years old.

I closed my eyes, holding back the tears, because I'd been stupid enough to keep hoping, somehow, that it was real.

That I could be happy again.

"You're not real," I stammered, backing away.

"It doesn't matter," Jared shook his head sadly.

"You'll be safe here. At peace."

I hung my head.

"But the djinn'll kill me, Jared. I'll die in a couple days, you know that."

Mom stroked my cheek.

"It'll feel like a lifetime here, sweetheart. You'll have everything you ever wanted. You'll get married, get to watch Sam grow up, you'll have me."

"I'm sorry," I let my tears fall. "I can't."

"Why?" Sam hung onto me.

"Why, Odette? You wanted your life back. You'll have it here."

"No," I whispered, because they were getting to me, and all I wanted to do was stay.

"Not like this."

Jared cradled my face in his hands.

"Stay with us, Odette. You'll be happy here."

I shook my head faintly.

"Do you really want to go back? Want to see all the blood and pain and misery? Want to always live a half-life? Please, I'm begging you. Drop the knife."

I wasn't strong enough.

The dagger clattered to the floor.

They smiled in relief, flickering back to their original forms.

"Let's go, honey," Mom looped her arm through mine.

I hung my head in shame, swiping at my tears.

I was a coward.

I couldn't face reality.

As I walked forward, something caught my eye.

A flash of blue.

The exact color of Cas' eyes.

I jerked to a stop.

They looked back at me.

"Odette?"

The tears streamed down my face noiselessly.

I had to do this.

"I'm sorry," My voice cracked. "But I have somewhere to be."

Jared stretched out a hand and I caught it in my own.

"I love you, I love all of you, but if this is supposed to be my family, then where is Dean? Where is Sam?"

"Where's….." I blinked hard. "Where's Cas?"

I kissed Jared one final time.

"I wish I could stay."

And the hole in my chest ripped itself open, because I was throwing away the one chance I had to be happy again.

"Sorry."

I picked up the knife and thrust it into my heart.

"NO!" Jared's yell morphed into Sam's shout, as I landed face first on the warehouse floor.

"Odette!"

Dean flipped me onto my back.

I'd made it, then.

Every particle of me wanted to go back.

I vaguely noticed the djinn lying on the floor.

"No, no, no no no," Sam muttered, propping me up.

"Don't. Don't do this, Odette."

I spat out blood, blinking at their flickering faces.

"S… sorry," I whispered, because I knew I was dying.

Strange, there wasn't any pain.

Just numbness.

"Damn it!" Dean held me up almost aggressively, and I could see in his eyes that he'd been sent there too.

"Don't you dare give up, Odette! Don't you dare!"

I shook my head slightly.

"I can't… I c…can't g….go…"

I couldn't talk, and my eyes fluttered shut.

"NO!"

Sam shook me desperately, and I flopped onto his lap lifelessly.

"CAS!" Dean suddenly yelled, and that made me start, because this was Dean calling for him, when he'd never liked him in the first place.

"Cas, you've gotta come! You have to save her!"

I wanted to see Cas, too, but it was too late.

My eyes opened to slits.

"Y…you c….can't save me, I've…. I've gotta go."

"You're not going anywhere."

Cool hands lifted my head up, and I stared into the same blue I'd seen at the warehouse.

"C…Cas, I'm… it's t..to late..…. y….you…"

"You're not going to die, Odette. I won't let you."

"Close your eyes," He said gently.

They fell shut easily, and white light flooded around me.

Cas' hands remained around my head.

My eyes fell open, and I was definitely feeling the pain now.

I caught onto Cas' sleeve.

"Thank you."

His eyes softened as he lifted me up by my jacket.

"You're always welcome."

"Oh, thank God," Sam breathed, hugging me hard.

"I thought…. I thought you were going to…."

He wrapped his arms around me tighter.

I breathed out, clinging to him.

I peeked at Dean's face.

He was motionless, working his jaw silently.

"Sorry, I-"

I stopped with a squeak of surprise as Dean pulled me away from Sam, grabbing me in a rib-cracking hug.

I felt his hold on me tighten, and I buried my head in his shoulder.

"Don't you dare do that to me ever again," Dean growled, refusing to let go.

I smiled tremulously into his jacket.

"I won't. Promise."

He finally released me, and I instantly fell to the ground.

Dean caught me at once, picking me up gently, and I couldn't hold back the tears any longer.

He shushed me quietly, swiping at my cheek with a callused thumb.

I hid my face in his chest, trying not to think about what I'd just given up.

I tried to muffle my sobs as the tears soaked his shirt.

He lifted me up carefully.

"It's okay, Bambi, I'm gonna take care of you. It's gonna be fine. I gotcha."

~Supernatural~

I put my head between my knees, burrowing into the bed.

"You made the right choice."

I ignored Castiel as he sat beside me.

I didn't want to think about the flash of blue I'd seen in the warehouse.

Didn't want to think about what it meant.

"Odette?"

I looked up at him, and something in his face changed as he saw my tear-streaked face.

"For a moment, when I was healing you….." Castiel paused.

"I wasn't sure you were going to live. I wasn't sure it would work. It…. it upset me. I didn't like it."

Color flooded into my cheeks.

"I am…. glad you are safe, Odette."

I jumped as Cas uncharacteristically placed a hand lightly on my shoulder for a brief minute.

And just for a second, I could hope.


	31. Lake Of Fire

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE- LAKE OF FIRE

"Hey, don't forget the extra onions this time, huh?"

Dean's voice intruded on my sleep, and I groaned.

Sam sighed.

"Dude, I'm the one whose gonna have to ride in the car with your extra onions."

Dean grinned, and Sam rolled his eyes, getting out of the car.

"Hey, see if they've got any pie."

Sam banged the door shut.

"Bring me some pie! I love me some pie!"

I moaned, stubbornly keeping my eyes shut, even though I knew I was awake.

"Bambi? You want anything?"

"Yeah," I mumbled into Cas' shoulder. "Sleep. That's what I want."

I froze as I registered the thought.

Cas looked down at me, almost amused.

"Go back to sleep, Odette."

My cheeks flamed with color, and I hid my face in his trenchcoat.

My eyes flew open as Dean's radio crackled with static.

He fiddled with it, but it turned off completely.

Castiel's eyes were suddenly blank and hooded.

"Out of the car, both of you."

We did as we were told.

The inside of the café was empty.

We ran into the café, calling out for Sam.

One customer was dead; face down in a puddle of blood.

"Sam?"

"Sam!" My head whipped around, searching for him.

Dean flipped out his gun, pushing me behind him.

Castiel took up the rear, and I was wedged in between them.

The employees were all dead, the blood congealing around their slit throats.

Castiel surveyed the room levelly.

Dean kicked open the back door, sweeping the area outside.

"Sam?"

"Sam!"

I had a bad feeling about this.

"Look."

Castiel strode forward to the door, swiping a finger across it.

We stared at him disbelievingly.

It was sulfur.

~Supernatural~

We pored over a map, and Bobby eyed Cas with poorly disguised suspicion.

I resisted the urge to pull Cas away from him.

"This is it," Bobby stabbed a finger on it.

"All demonic signs and omens over the past month."

"Are you joking?" Dean spat.

"There's nothing here."

"Exactly," Bobby pointed out.

"Well, come on, there's gotta be something," Dean urged.

"What about the normal, low-level stuff? You know, exorcisms, that kind of thing."

"That's what I'm telling you," Bobby said, exasperated.

"There's nothing. It's completely quiet."

Dean rounded on Castiel.

"Why can't you find him?"

Castiel's eyes tightened.

"I've told you before. Whatever's taken Sam is blocking my power. I can't locate him."

"Great," Dean snarled. "What, do we just close our eyes and point?"

Dean's phone rang, and he snatched it up.

"Ash, what do you got?"

"Okay, listen," Ash's voice crackled on the other end of the line.

"It's a big negatory on Sam."

"Oh, come on, man!" Dean yelled.

"You've gotta give us something. We're looking at a three thousand mile haystack here!"

"Listen, Dean," Ash spoke rapidly. "I did find something."

"Well, what?" Dean demanded.

"I can't talk over this line, Dean."

"Come on, I don't have time for this!" Dean exploded.

"Make time, okay?" Ash insisted. "Because this—not only does this almost definitely help you find your brother, this is… it's huge. So get here. Now."

Ash hung up.

Dean looked at us.

"I guess we're going to the Roadhouse."

~Supernatural~

We turned the corner to the Roadhouse.

My mouth fell open.

The entire building had burnt to the ground.

"What the hell?"

We got out of the car, walking among the debris.

Every single part of it had been destroyed.

"Oh my God," I whispered.

"You see Ellen?" Dean asked sharply.

"No," Bobby shook his head. "No Ash, either."

Something caught my eye, and I bent down.

"Dean," My voice trembled.

He looked over to where I was standing, seeing Ash's watch on the pile of rubble.

Cas pulled on it, and I hid my face in Dean's chest.

It was still attached to Ash's burnt corpse.

Dean put a hand on my head.

"Oh, Ash, damn it!"

~Supernatural~

I glanced at Dean and Bobby, who were arguing quietly on the side of the highway.

How would we find Sam?

I couldn't think of any way…. except…..

No.

The visions terrified me, and they were agonizing, but if it would help Sam….

I looked over at Cas for help.

_Can I do it?_

He nodded once.

I gulped, moving towards Dean and Bobby.

I swallowed nervously, my throat had gone dry.

"I can…"

They ignored me.

I spoke loudly.

"I can find Sam!"

They froze.

Dean was at my side in an instant.

"How?"

"My visions," I stammered. "I think it could work."

"All right," Dean's eyes flashed. "Try it."

I pressed a hand to my forehead, trying to unlock it, trying to think of Sam, Sam who needed me, who'd saved my life so many times…

The pain was so sudden; I would have fallen to my knees if not for Dean and Cas catching hold of my arms.

_A bell tolls loudly, engraved with an oak tree._

_It signals death_.

I groaned, doubling over in pain.

Cas and Dean held me up.

_Sam walks through the town._

_The knife he holds is bloody._

_The sign on the town is old and aged_.

I gasped, eyes flipping open.

I fell against the car, chest heaving.

"What?" Dean stared at me. "What did you see?"

"I know where Sam is," I panted.

"Cold Oak, South Dakota."

~Supernatural~

We pulled up near the edge of the woods.

I stepped out warily, staying close to Cas.

Something was very, very wrong here.

"Looks like the rest of the way's on foot," Bobby shrugged.

We opened the trunk, grabbing our weapons.

I clutched my gun tightly.

"Let's go."

We ran down the street, and my pulse quickened.

Something was wrong.

And suddenly, we could see Sam.

"Sam!" Dean yelled.

Sam looked up from the fallen man on the ground.

"Dean! Odette!"

And then I knew what was going to happen before it did.

The man on the ground reared up, grabbing a knife on the sandy road.

"Sam! Look out!"

Our warning came too late.

The knife went straight through Sam's back.

"NO!" I didn't know if it was Dean or I screaming.

He twisted the knife in; creating a massive wound, and sped away.

Sam fell to his knees.

Bobby chased after him, and we slid to the ground in front of Sam.

Dean grabbed at Sam's jacket, trying to keep him conscious.

"Sam!"

Sam fell forward on Dean's shoulder.

"No!"

I locked my arms around him, clutching his back.

My hand came away slick with blood.

"Hey, look at me," Dean said, faltering.

"It's not even that bad. It's not even that bad, all right? Sammy? Sam! Hey, listen to me. We're gonna patch you up, okay? You're gonna be good as new. I've got you. That's my job, right? Watch out for my pain in the ass little brother? Sam? Sam! Sammy!"

No response.

I shook violently, cradling his head in my arms.

"Come on, Sam," My lips quivered, tears falling onto Sam's head.

"I've already lost one brother. Don't make me lose you too."

Sam's eyes slid shut, and his body slumped forward onto us.

Dean grabbed Cas' sleeve.

"Heal him! Please!"

Cas slid down, pressing a hand against Sam's forehead.

Nothing happened.

"I'm sorry," Castiel's voice was filled with regret. "He's gone."

"NO!"

Cas trailed a hand across Sam's face, almost like a farewell.

"NO!" We shouted.

The tears were streaming down my face and Dean's.

We held Sam in our arms as he died.

"SAM!"


	32. The Road To Damnation

**Disclaimer- I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO- THE ROAD TO DAMNATION

I sat with Dean, keeping my arm around him resolutely, even as he tried to shake me off.

Both of us stared at Sam's dead body.

Bobby stepped in with a bucket of chicken, and the smell of it made the bile rise in my throat.

"Dean?"

Dean did not shift his gaze.

"No thanks, I'm fine."

Bobby knew better than to ask me, with my face as green as it was.

"You should eat something."

There was no mistaking the bite in Dean's voice as he answered.

"I said I'm fine, Bobby."

"Dean… Odette," Bobby looked away.

"I hate to bring this up, I really do, but don't you think it's time….. we bury Sam?"

"No!" We both said at the same time.

If we buried Sam…. then I wouldn't be able to deny it anymore.

I'd have to face the fact that I'd lost another brother.

A brother I couldn't save.

Again.

I could see Dean was thinking the same thing.

"We could," Bobby sighed. "Maybe…."

"What?" Dean glared at him.

"Torch his corpse? Not yet."

Bobby set down the bucket on the table.

"I want you to come with me."

Dean set his jaw.

"I'm not going anywhere."

"Dean, please," Bobby pleaded.

"Would you cut me some slack?" Dean's eyes tightened, and I stared at Bobby accusingly.

"I just don't think you should be alone, that's all," Bobby shrugged.

My head snapped up, and I locked gazes with the old hunter.

"He's not alone."

Bobby measured my expression, and backed off.

"I just think I could use your help."

Dean snorted.

"Something big is going down," He insisted. "End-of-the-world big."

"Well, then let it end!" Dean yelled suddenly, and I had to hold him back from getting up.

"You don't mean that," Bobby said softly.

"You don't think so?" Dean gritted his teeth.

"Huh?" He suddenly seemed to remember me.

"You don't think we've given enough? You don't think we've paid enough? I'm done with it. All of it. And if you know what's good for you, turn around, and get the hell out of here."

"Go!" Dean roared.

He breathed hard, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Please, just go."

"You know where I'll be," Bobby said quietly, closing the door after him.

We looked at Sam's motionless body in silence.

~Supernatural~

The minute Bobby left, Dean gave up, and I squeezed him tighter as the tears rolled down our cheeks.

He didn't fight me this time.

Dean leant closer to Sam, and I closed my eyes as he started speaking.

"I just wanted you to be a kid for a little while longer, Sammy. I always tried to protect you, keep you safe. It was just always my responsibility, you know? It's like I had one job."

Dean hitched a breath.

"I had one job, and I screwed it up. I blew it. For that, I'm sorry. I guess that's what I do. I let down the people I love."

"Stop," I snapped, wrapping both my arms around him this time.

"That's not true. Stop that," I said sharply, because I couldn't let him think the way I had.

"It is true," Dean lowered his head.

"I let Dad down. I've let _you_ down so many times, Odette."

Dean didn't let me object.

He looked over to Sam.

"And now I guess I'm just supposed to let him down, too."

I moved away from him, cradling Sam's head in my lap.

"Sammy," I whispered, bowing my head.

"I'm so sorry. If I'd just thought of using my visions earlier, you'd still be… you'd still be…."

I choked on my words.

"I couldn't save you any more than I did my little brother. I've just lost one more."

I burst into tears, kissing his forehead gently.

Dean pulled me away, and suddenly it was he doing the comforting.

I sobbed into his chest.

"What am I supposed to do?" Dean murmured, not tearing his gaze from Sam.

"How am I supposed to live with that?"

"What am I supposed to _do?_" He suddenly shouted, jumping to his feet.

Dean thrust out a slip of paper at me.

I took it numbly.

"Bobby's address," Dean said shortly. "I need you to stay there."

I looked at him confusedly.

"I'm not leaving you."

"You don't have a choice," Dean growled. "I want you to go."

"But-"

"GO!"

I stopped at once.

Dean's eyes softened.

"I just…. I just need some time alone, Odette. Before I…. before we….."

Dean was an excellent liar.

And fool that I was, I believed him.

"Okay."

I jerked in shock as Dean pulled me into a hug, squeezing tightly.

That should've been my next indication.

He didn't let go.

"You're a good kid, Bambi. Closest I have to a sister."

His grip tightened.

"Take care of yourself."

I could've stopped him then, but at that moment, all I could think about was how Dean sounded so eerily like his father before he died.

~Supernatural~

I bit my nails anxiously.

Dean should've been back by now.

Bobby looked at me grumpily.

"Get some sleep, idjit," He said gruffly.

"Dean's not gonna be happy if he sees you like this."

I didn't add that Dean was probably worse off than I was.

Neither of us would be sleeping, I was sure.

The doorbell rang, and I jumped up, desperate for something to do.

"I'll get it!"

I walked dazedly to the door, pulling it open.

I froze.

Sam was standing in front of me.

Healthy, perfectly breathing, Sam.

"Hey, Odette, h-"

The rest of his sentence was cut off as I flung my arms around him tightly, burying my face in his broad shoulder.

I hid my tears, refusing to let him go.

"Um," Sam shifted uncomfortably. "Odette, um, ow."

I pulled away at once.

"Sorry, it's just good to see… you up and about, Sam."

Bobby jolted to a halt as he saw Sam.

And then it hit me.

I glared at Dean.

What had he done?

Sam distracted me.

"Hey, Odette, where's Cas?"

I blinked.

"Cas?"

"Yeah," Sam looked at me worriedly.

"Dean said he patched me up. Are you sure you're all right?"

"Um," I twitched. "Cas has his…. uh, orders. I'm sure he'll come soon."

"Anyway," I grabbed Dean's arm.

"Bobby has some old books in the truck. We'll just lug 'em in."

Bobby scowled at me, but I needed to talk to Dean first.

I dragged him to the junkyard, making sure we were out of earshot.

"You stupid ass!" I pushed him hard. "What did you do? What did you do?"

I wanted to punch him in the face.

"You made a deal…. you made a deal for Sam, didn't you? How long did they give you?"

"Odette," Dean said softly.

"How long?" I screamed, shoving him again.

Dean didn't meet my eyes.

"One year."

The books in my hands clattered to the cement.

"Damn it, Dean!"

"Which is why we gotta find this yellow-eyed son of a bitch," Dean ignored me.

"That's why I'm gonna kill him myself. I got nothing to lose now, right?"

I seized him by the collar, shaking him hard.

"I could strangle you, Dean!"

Dean snorted.

"And send me downstairs ahead of schedule?"

I let go.

"What is it with you Winchesters, huh? You, John. You're both just itching to throw yourselves down in the pit."

"That's my point," Dean insisted.

"Dad brought me back, Odette. I'm not even supposed to be here. At least this way, something good could come out of it, you know? At least my life could mean something."

My mouth fell open in shock.

"And it didn't before? You're the bravest person I know, Dean! The best! Can't you see that? Have you got that low of an opinion of yourself? Are you that screwed in the head?"

I grabbed him again.

"I couldn't let him die, Odette," Dean said haltingly.

"I couldn't. Wouldn't you have done the same, if you had the chance to save your brother?"

My retort was lost, and I fell against him in tears.

"So, what?" My lips trembled as Dean held me tightly.

I put my hands on either side of his face.

"We've got Sam, but I'm gonna lose you now, is that it? You're going to die, you think I'm going to live through that?"

I cried into his jacket as he put a hand on my head.

"What've you done, Dean?" I whispered inaudibly.

"What've you _done?_"

Dean straightened as something clanked in a distant part of the junkyard.

We crawled to the car, and Dean caught hold of the intruder.

I recognized the blonde hair at once.

It was Ellen.

~Supernatural~

Cas leaned against Bobby's table.

"Wyoming. That's where you need to go. Azazel, the demon that killed your family, he's trying to open a portal there. And he's going to use the boy that killed-"

He broke off as Sam entered the room.

"Hey, Cas," Sam smiled. "Thanks for patching me up."

His eyes tightened, sweeping across the room to Dean.

_Play along_, I pleaded. _Please_.

He surveyed me intently for an immeasurable amount of time before dipping his head.

"You're welcome, Samuel."

Ellen eyed him warily.

"What sort of portal, Castiel?"

Cas looked up at us grimly.

"A portal to hell."


	33. Devil's Gate

**Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any of its characters.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE- DEVIL'S GATE

We opened the cemetery gate quietly, silently watching Sam's attacker enter, moving towards a crypt.

Dean stood behind a tomb, clutching a gun tightly.

"Howdy, Jake," Sam greeted him pleasantly.

We emerged from the shadows, and the gun did not waver in my grip.

"Wait…." Jake blinked. "You were dead. I killed you."

"Yeah?" Sam raised an eyebrow. "Well next time, finish the job."

"I did!" Jake insisted, backing away slowly.

"I cut clean through your spinal cord, man."

"You can't be alive. You can't be."

"Okay," Bobby cocked his gun. "Just take it real easy there, son."

Jake chuckled.

"And if I don't?"

"Wait and see," Sam set his jaw.

"What, you a tough guy all of a sudden?" Jake challenged.

"What are you gonna do-kill me?"

"It's a thought," Sam admitted.

"You had your chance," He grinned. "You couldn't."

Castiel stepped out in front of me.

"You think Azazel will give you what you want?" Castiel's eyes flashed.

"He's a demon, Jake. He'll kill you. This is your last chance."

Jake started laughing.

"What are you smiling at, you little bitch?" Dean growled.

"Hey lady," Jake looked over to Ellen.

"Do me a favor. Put that gun to your head."

Ellen's hand jerked up, pointing the gun at her temple.

"See," Jake shrugged.

"That Ava girl was right. Once you give in to it, there's all sorts of Jedi mind tricks you can learn."

Sam's eyes flared.

"Let her go."

"Shoot him," Ellen's voice trembled.

Jake scoffed.

"You'll be mopping up skull before you get a shot off."

He paused.

"Everybody put your guns down. Except you, sweetheart."

I tried to hold on to mine, but Jake was stronger than Andy.

Three guns clattered to the ground.

"Okay. Thank you."

Jake turned around and pulled the Colt out of his pocket, inserting it into the crypt.

Dean and Bobby grabbed Ellen before she could shoot herself.

Once again, since Castiel had been unarmed from the beginning, Jake didn't consider him a threat.

Cas sent him flying into a headstone, and Sam shot Jake four times in the back.

Jake fell to the ground with a sickening thump, and Sam positioned himself over him.

"Please…." Jake spat out blood. "Don't. Please."

Sam shot him three times in the chest.

We watched as two separate engravings on the crypt spun in different directions, stopping with an ominous click.

Castiel pushed us behind him.

"This is not good."

Ellen looked sharply at him.

"What is it?"

"It's hell," Cas said grimly.

Dean pulled the Colt out of the crypt.

"Take cover—now!" Cas yelled, and we ran behind the tombstones.

The doors to the crypt burst open.

A large black mass of demons erupted from the other side, shooting outward.

"What the hell just happened?" Dean shouted.

"That's a devil's gate," Castiel replied, still inexplicably calm.

"A door to hell."

"Come on!" Ellen pulled Bobby ahead. "We gotta shut that gate!"

Dean checked the Colt for bullets.

"If the demon gave this to Jake…. then maybe…"

Thunder crashed, and Azazel appeared behind Dean, flinging the gun out of his hands and into his own.

"A boy shouldn't play with daddy's guns."

Cas, preoccupied with trying to shut the gate, snapped his head around, trying to block him.

"Well, well, well," Azazel sneered.

"It's dear little Castiel. You know, if you wanted to stop me, you shouldn't have tried to shut that gate. Very taxing on angels, I'm told."

"Cas!" I screamed, as Azazel sent him crashing against the door.

The demon turned around, sending Dean and me careening through the air.

"Dean! Odette!"

Sam let go of the gate door, running towards us.

Azazel threw Sam into a nearby tree.

"I'll get to you in a minute, champ. But I'm proud of you—knew you had it in you."

He flexed a hand, paralyzing the four of us.

"Sit a spell. So, Dean….." Azazel glanced at him.

"I got to thank you. You see, demons can't resurrect people unless a deal is made."

"I know, red tape," He waved a hand casually. "It'll make you nuts. But thanks to you, Sammy's back in rotation."

He laughed.

"Now, I wasn't counting on that, but I'm glad. I liked him better than Jake, anyhow. Tell me—have you heard the expression: 'if a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is?'"

Dean snarled incoherently.

"You call that deal good?"

Azazel shrugged.

"Well, it's a better shake than your dad ever got. And you never wondered why? I'm surprised at you."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Castiel slowly get to his feet.

Azazel didn't notice.

"I mean… you saw what your brother just did to Jake, right? That was pretty cold, wasn't it?"

He chuckled.

"How certain are you that what you brought back is hundred percent pure Sam?"

Azazel laughed loudly.

"You of all people should know, that's what dead should stay dead. Anyway… thanks a bunch. I knew I kept you alive for some reason. Until now, anyway. I couldn't have done it without your pathetic, self-loathing, self-destructive desire to sacrifice yourself for your family."

He jerked back to me, and I shrieked in pain as my mouth filled with blood.

"I've gotten rather tired of you," Azazel said ruefully.

"You're getting too strong for your own good, and in light of recent evidence…."

My breaths came harsher now, and Dean and Sam's shouts were dwindling.

Azazel cocked his head to one side.

"A bullet would be to much of a mundane way to die for you, wouldn't it?"

My scream ratcheted up higher.

Azazel clucked his tongue thoughtfully.

"How about I kill you the way I slaughtered your pretty little mother?"

I froze.

No.

If what he said was true…

And suddenly, Castiel grabbed Azazel from behind, flooding the cemetery with white light.

The demon shot out of the body, and suddenly it was John Winchester wrestling him to the ground.

Azazel pushed him to the ground, re-entering the body.

When he finally stood up, Dean shot him in the forehead with the Colt.

Azazel sank to the cement floor, dead.

Cas finally closed the gate, turning to see John.

John put a hand on Dean's shoulder.

Both their eyes glistened with tears.

Sam stood on the side, picking me up gently, and nodded at his father.

With one last look at Dean, John stepped back and disappeared.

~Supernatural~

We stood over the demon's smoking body, dazed.

I shook slightly, and Sam wrapped an arm around me.

Dean patted my cheek once.

"Well, check that off the to-do list."

"You did it," Sam whispered.

"I didn't do it alone," Dean said softly.

"Do you think Dad really…" Sam stuttered.

"Do you really think he climbed outta hell?"

"The door was open," Dean said quietly.

"If anyone's stubborn enough to do it… it would be him."

"Where do you think he is now?"

"I don't know."

"I kind of can't believe it, Dean," Sam laughed shakily.

"I mean… our whole lives, everything… has been prepping for this, and now I… I kind of don't know what to say."

"I do."

Dean looked back at me once, leaning closer to the body.

"That was for both our moms, you son of a bitch."

~Supernatural~

We walked towards the Impala in silence.

"You know, when Jake saw me…. it was like he saw a ghost."

Sam scoffed.

"I mean, hell, you heard him, Dean. He said he killed me."

Dean kept his eyes averted.

"I'm glad he was wrong."

"I don't think he was, Dean," Sam said softly.

"What happened…. after I was stabbed?"

"I already told you," Dean said shortly.

"Not everything."

"Sam, we just killed the demon," Dean sighed.

"Can we celebrate for a minute?"

Sam's eyes tightened.

"Did I die?"

"Oh, come on," Dean refused to look at him.

"Did you sell your soul for me?" Sam's voice shook.

"Oh, come on! No!"

"Tell me the truth."

Dean sniffed.

"Dean, tell me the truth."

"Sam….."

"How long do you get?" Sam's voice broke, and the tears pricked at my eyes again.

"One year." Dean swallowed.

"I got one year."

Sam rounded on me.

"Did you know about this?"

"Only after you came to Bobby's," I whispered.

"You shouldn't have done that," Sam's eyes filled with tears.

"How could you do that?"

"Don't get mad at me," Dean pleaded.

"Don't you do that. I had to. I had to look out for you. That's my job."

"And what do you think my job is?" Sam demanded.

"What?"

"You've saved my life over and over. I mean, you sacrifice everything for me. Don't you think I'd do the same for you? You're my big brother. There's nothing I wouldn't do for you. And I don't care what it takes, I'm gonna get you out of this."

I grabbed Dean's arm.

"We're not gonna let you die, Dean," I squeezed tightly.

"You're not going anywhere."

"Yeah," Dean said thickly.

Castiel came up behind us, and I reached for his hand.

"You all right, Cas?"

He blinked at me, surprised.

"Yes."

He looked back at the cemetery.

"Azazel may be dead, but he's unleashed an army."

He fixed us with a steely look.

"I hope you're ready. The war's begun."

"Well, then," Dean tossed the Colt into the trunk.

"We've got work to do."


End file.
